


Lady Magique

by InsaneMagician



Category: Miraculous Ladybug, Miraculous Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - No Powers, Alternate Universe - Reality Show
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-23
Updated: 2019-03-23
Packaged: 2019-11-17 21:14:29
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 23,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18106592
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InsaneMagician/pseuds/InsaneMagician
Summary: In a spur of the moment incident, Marinette finds herself being part of Project Miraculous Reality Show, where designer-hopefuls compete until one of them stands on top, victor over the cutthroat world that is Fashion. Good thing is, they design as masked entrants, and everyone is loving Ladybug; bad thing is, Marinette is just another teen in the house, no one knows she's Ladybug.





	1. Cover

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [Project Miraculous](https://archiveofourown.org/works/5842102) by [Mizyuuki256](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mizyuuki256/pseuds/Mizyuuki256). 



> _Disclaimer_ : Miraculous Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir belong to, uh, Thomas Astruc (?)
> 
> So, I've been sucked into this fandom, I feel very royally screwed. Also, so the stories are not confused, I'll be publishing mine under a different title.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cover image used at FF

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, there's a poll at my FF site, in case you want to drop by there and vote


	2. Introducing . . . Ladybug!

Marinette laughed along with Alya, pointing at the TV as both of them laughed so loudly Nora, Alya's older sister, had to come by and request for them to keep the volume down. Etta and Ella had just gone to sleep, and might wake up with all the ruckus.

"Sorry Nora," Alya replied, giggling.

"Yeah, promise to keep the volume down," Marinette added in a quiet, breathless manner. "It's just, _Project Miraculous_ got to us."

"Again?" Nora asked with a snort. "I don't get what's so great about it."

"Yeah, that's one of the reasons why it's so great!" Alya said with another giggle, not seeing the brief flash of hurt.

"Come join us," Marinette proposed, making space on the couch for the eldest Césaire sibling to sit; after seeing that flash, she couldn't help it. "Just this one episode, and if you choose to suspend the marathon, we'll abide."

"Mar!" Alya hissed, eyes wide, just to groan when her sister stretched her hand at her.

"Deal!" Nora declared, sitting in the offered seat, hand still stretched. Ever the oldest, she liked being involved in her siblings' affair; she liked setting the example and being looked up at.

"Fine!" Alya grumbled, shaking the hand, later poking at her best friend's ribs.

"Have a little faith in me," Marinette requested softly, looking a bit hurt and down at the floor.

Of course, this only succeeded in making Alya feel like she had kicked her own puppy (they didn't have one, it still felt that way none the less) and could only groan, before sighing and hugging her bestie. Marinette turned shyly back, and at the smile Alya gave her, she returned it with enough force to light the whole of France, if not the world. Together, they went back to being absorbed by the entertainment and before any of them realized — they were quietly engrossed — five episodes had passed. It was only when the jingling of the keys resounded that Nora realized and looked at the time.

She gasped. "Go to bed you two, or I'll get in trouble," she hissed as she changed back to cable, and her favorite kickboxing channel, " _now_."

Alya was about to protest when Marinette pulled her to her room and closed the door, while leaving it a bit open as to not make a noise. She had been about to protest with her best friend, when she had heard the sound of the lock and bolted for it.

"Alya, Marinette, are you two up?" Marlena asked loudly, making Alya gasp.

"Sorry mom," Nora replied, "they went to bed two hours ago or so."

"Ah, behaving responsibly," Otis remarked, smiling. "I'm glad to see you're becoming a fine, responsible adult, Nora."

The two girls heard the scoff as they went to the bed, forgoing the inflatable one as it would make noise. Thankful that they had been in their jammies already, they looked at one another as they made the blanket cover them, fear in their eyes. Marinette carefully took the glasses off her friend's face and turned to place them on the night table, as quietly as possible. It was a feat that the klutz had yet managed to make everything fall apart and give them away. Before she could turn back, Alya spooned her and unable to figure out a good answer, and actually calming at the touch, Marinette laid down, closed her eyes, and proceeded to relax further into the embrace. No sooner had they settled, than the door was opened.

In any other situation, Marinette would have frozen and given herself away, with the way her breath would hitch. But, with Alya's arms securely around her, and having relaxed previously, they were capable of keeping up the façade. Marlena turned around and left the door as it had been, returning to her husband and eldest child's side.

"I'm worried about them," the woman began as she turned to Nora, "are they dating?"

Nora stared. "Right, because Marinette doesn't have this absurd crush on that pretty boy."

"Who?" Otis asked, surprised.

"That model teen?" Nora supplied, tone mocking.

"Adrien, right," Marlene said, recognition dawning from all the times the girl had mentioned him. "Well, should I worry about Alya?"

Nora snorted. "Wow, I'm glad I'm a good influence."

Her named was hissed, " _Nora_!"

"What?!" She defended. "Alya knows she doesn't need a man to be validated as a human. She has other interests than boys."

"Well, she does want to be a reporter," the man was heard saying.

"Besides, I'm sure the only reason why Marinette even started crushing on that pretty plain boy, is because he's in all those fashion magazines."

"Those things are bound to melt one's brains if it's all you'll look at," the woman agreed.

That was when their voices faded, and Alya groaned softly, holding Marinette tighter.

"I can't _believe_ my mom would think I'm gay," she groused, closing her eyes tighter when her bestie turned around to face her, "just because, what, we _spooned_? Doesn't even make sense."

Marinette giggled. "I don't know Alya," she gave her a goofy smile, "I think you're girlfriend material." The reddish-brunette scoffed as the bluenette giggled again. "Alya, will you help me get over my idiotic teen crush, Adrien 'plain pretty boy' Agreste?"

The mock was evident and Alya decided to play along, gasping. "Oh, you'd bat for the other team, for me?"

"Imagine if I became obsessed over you?" Marinette continued. "Oh, wouldn't it be wonderful?"

Alya grinned, knowing how to respond. " _Paw_ sitive."

Marinette had trouble controlling her urge to laugh. Cat Noir, the only character who crashed the _Project Miraculous_ set and had never been caught, was also the only character who wore his outfit in a permanent fashion and the recurrent prankster and was close to trademarking the most awful cat puns in the world, was also a constant source of laughing material for the two. An eternal flirt, he often mocked and played around with Camembert cheese; never to eat, just to punk and pull pranks, and overall spice the show up. After more cat-astrophic puns, they fell asleep without realizing. As always, they had a good time together.

* * *

"Perhaps we shouldn't have introduced her," Alya grumbled, narrowing her eyes at Marinette, who gave her a sheepish smile in return. "I can't believe you wasted cash on that stink!" She shouted at her sister. "I'm gonna get revenge in some way, Marinette."

"I'm sorry, how could I have known this would happen?" The bluenette asked, at a complete loss, before wrinkling her nose at the memory. "Being woken up to the smell of Camembert, ugh, I can now pity those contestants."

Alya sighed as Nora came by and placed her arms over them both.

"Hey girls," she began, holding them tight until they groaned. "I heard the show is looking for contestants."

"Right!" Alya began animatedly talking about it, forgetting immediately about the unpleasant wake-up call. "You must submit designs for both, HawkMoth and Cat Noir, besides your own masked design."

"So, when are you girls going to submit yours?" Nora asked.

"Wh — _what_?!" Marinette gasped.

"For this new season, they're looking for talented kids between fifteen and eighteen," Nora remarked, smiling.

"Mari, this could be _perfect_ for you!" Alya gasped.

But Marinette was already shaking her head. "No, no no no no no no no _no_ **no** **_NO_**. I am a klutz enough as it is, without everyone having to watch. No, I would probably end up sending someone, Adrien's father or maybe _Adrien_ **himself** to the emergency room or something —" she began hyperventilating.

Before she could spiral into a more tragic scenario, with her ending in jail or some other dramatic ending, Alya spoke. "But, Mari —"

"No Alya, I can't risk it —" the bluenette answered, paling visibly and at the border of a panic attack.

"Marinette, _bébé_ ," Nora, for the first time, took hold of the bluenette and brought her up to meet her amber eyes; Nora would never go down to meet someone's eyes, she always brought them up to her height, "what do you mean, you can't risk it?

"Sure, you're a klutz, and a scatterbrain, and sure, everyone is going to be able to see it but, Marinette," she brought them close enough so their noses _touched_ , "you're merely risking ridicule, but you can gain fame for your designs.

"Why do you think my name in the ring is Anansi?" Nora sat Marinette down on the counter while she pointed at the name that was on her kickboxer's shorts. Moving a bit, she showed her the yellow helmet with the spider clearly emblazoned. "When I first got on that ring, I was a rookie, but I'm also different when I'm up there, I'm less distracted and more focused, cautious to an absurd degree.

"Marinette, do I look like a cautious person?" She asked, serious all the way.

The blunette hesitated, feeling like it was a trick question, her panic attack forgotten. "No . . ." she replied with uncertainty, and sighed in relief at the nod she received.

"Because I'm not," Nora answered honestly. "But, once I get this on, I am a different person.

"Just because _you_ are a klutz, it doesn't mean that alter ego of yours, will be too," she stated strongly. "You have an opportunity behind that mask. Take it."

The strong statement was met with silence and surprise; it was a side of Nora that Alya had never seen, much less Marinette. Nora's amber eyes pierced bluebell ones, locking them in an intense, yet tender, gaze.

It felt like ages before Marinette was capable of answering, and it wasn't an answer she herself, was expecting.

"Okay."

* * *

That, was Marinette's undoing.

After she said those words, Alya became excited and said they could enter together. Without notice, it became a whirlwind.

To enter, she had to design a new HawkMoth mask. Everyone knew HawkMoth was part of Gabriel — the brand — but no one knew if he was actually _the_ Gabriel Agreste, Adrien's dad. Previous seasons, this had also been part of the entering contest, and he always wore the mask of the winner. Cat Noir was, apparently, a rogue contestant who had gained access and caused mischief, and became part of the show after the second season, when everyone voted online to have him stay. Hence, they had gone lenient on security again, and when the show began going off the charts thanks to the addition, he was allowed to come and go as he pleased. From season three onward, they had taken to requesting for designs regarding his own suit, although he never wore the winning outfit. It would seem, since he was a rogue element in the show, that he had the ability to simply use his own. He wasn't the only one, to be honest.

During the fourth and fifth season, no one won top spot because HawkMoth didn't like any of the designs. Who could blame him? Those seasons were the worst for those who watched the show for fashion reasons, but it got more viewers since it seemed to focus more on the _reality show_ aspect. The following seasons had better quality regarding fashion, and the audience remained steady. This was, perhaps, the reason why HawkMoth wanted to add variation, thus decided to make the latest season, Teen season.

At least, that was Marinette's speculation, which had gained popularity in Alya's PMB, _Project Miraculous Blog_. **Season Ten of the _Miraculous Project_ , is  _Teen_ Season; are you ready for the angst that comes along?** — it was how Alya's blog promoted the next season, it was even on the banner. It intensified the hype of what was to come and more people joined her site to speculate and revel in the frey of rumors.

Meanwhile, Marinette's creative process was in a whirl. Cat Noir's suit was a breeze, and HawkMoth's mask was a rather simple, yet elegant design. Just when she's began to work on her own, did the wind seem to die down. She, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, experienced something for the first time in her whole life, regarding fashion: her first **block**. When she was working on her own agenda, she could take things at her own pace. _Now_ that she had a deadline, something that was demanding a particular need, she felt at a loss. The pressure was new and disconcerting, and quite honestly, scary.

In order to gain some perspective, she began by evaluating what exactly she was going to need to be successful in the show. All of those before or well, many before, worked with opulence and pomp and flashiness, and many had been disqualified, not because of actual failure but due to failure to deliver, or because of mishaps happenings in regards to their costumes. First of, as a natural klutz, that was a recipe for disaster. Second, it had nothing to do with her style or sense for it — a limited amount of her designs were exotic or with flair.

Most were defined by being down-to-earth, comfortable wear that aimed to be practical and only the accessories were flashy; top wear, meaning hats and caps and the such, as well as belts and scarfs, these were meant to add spice and flavor to an otherwise stylish and simple design. Those, she found easy to add flair to and sometimes, when fancy would strike, would she easily draw some such design; her first was actually an Eiffel Tower inspired dress, and although it was the furthest thing from pragmatic, she fell in love with the idea and made an entire collection based on landmarks.

Thinking back on those, 'good old days', she groaned at her lack of inspiration. " _Maman_ , I've hit the tip of my creativity, and now I'm out of ideas." She despaired from her spot on the table.

"Washed up at fifteen," her mother, Sabine, remarked in a resigned tone. She took some incense out and began to burn it before bowing her head to the wind. "Come now Marinette, say your prayers with me to your muse, wishing them well on their next step."

" _Maman_ . . ." the girl groaned but still stood and reluctantly bowed her own head, silently mourning her inspiration.

"Now, come along with me," her mother said, and without much prompt the two females left the house. As it was usual, Sundays were opened until lunch hour, and Sabine always left to purchase groceries for the week. "Have you thought of what you want for your birthday this year?" Her mother inquired as they walked.

"Well, since the earrings you bought me it has always been something based on ladybugs," Marinette mused, smiling at the fresh air and all that Paris had to offer commuters. "I really loved the brooch last year, and although the tradition began three ago, I think maybe its time I stopped?" She was hesitant.

"Hmmm. . . ." Sabine turned to place some hair behind her ear and looked at her child's her empty lobes. "I understand your reluctance, we hadn't known you were allergic.

"But you know your _maman_ ," she began with a smile as she turned and they resumed walking.

"Knows a guy, who knows a guy," Marinette supplied a bit sadly. " _Maman_ ," she covered her ear, keeping the weird scar from view, sighing as she considered her words, "I loved the necklace and brooch, they don't hurt my skin."

"We cannot live in fear, Marinette," her mother told her seriously, before stopping, "I need you to pick something at this address."

Giving her a slip, Sabine began buying what she needed in the Chinese neighborhood. A boy appeared from seemingly out of nowhere and began helping her store things in bags he had brought. Marinette was a bit confused, since those boys were there to help shoppers and earn a pretty penny, but she would usually go with her mother, not run other errands. Sighing, for she knew the last thing she would do was disappoint her mother, she went to the address on the slip. Knocking, she waited patiently.

"Hello," an old Chinese man greeted her from behind, making her jump. "Oh, I do not believe we have met."

"Ah, hi, I uh — my name is, Marinette," she could see recognition in his eyes at her name.

"Sabine's child," he exclaimed, narrowing his eyes as he gave her an appraising look. "Let her know, it is on the house."

"Huh?" The word escaped her mouth, but she was so surprised, she could only stare dumbfounded.

He made a motion for her to follow him inside as he sidestepped her and opened the door. Waiting by it, she saw him going to an old gramophone and pull two bags from it's side before returning to her with them. The room was neat and sparsely furnished, a curious small green something lurked on the corner of her eye but before she could focus, the man was back and requesting for her full attention.

"And," he gave her a small paper bag before showing her the other, "this one, is on me, for the black cat."

" _What_?!" Marinette was perplexed; was she perhaps in the fabled twilight zone?

"The first one," he pointed to the bag after guiding her back out, "needs warm water to get the spots on. Cold gets them off."

"Wait," but he was already back inside. "I don't understand."

"You will, in time," and with those words, he closed his door.

"Can I at least get your name?" She asked the closed door, before sighing and deflating, a single digit in the air.

She was startled when the door opened again, stepping back in surprise. "I am, Sifu Fu, or Master Fu. _Zàijiàn_." He said his goodbyes before closing the door again.

Confused, she returned to her mother, placing the paper bags in her purse and noticing Sabine was done with the shopping. Before she could ask about Master Fu, Marinette was given the last bags and followed the boys and her maman back to the house. Once there, Tom, Marinette's papa, gave the boys some fresh baguettes and some old chocolate croissants, much to their glee. By then, it was time to cook lunch, and she easily forgot all about the packages.

It wasn't until she was turning in for the night that she remembered. Curious, she took a look at the first package. A pair of earrings came out, only they seemed to be magnetic and didn't pierce her skin; trying it nervously on, she smiled at herself when she looked in the mirror. She was pleasantly surprised, and although they were a sad black color, they felt comfortable, as if they belonged in her ear. Remembering Master Fu's words, she took the other one to the bathroom. Turning on the hot water, she placed her finger until it began to get warm before a drop fell on the dead black surface and turning the water off. She then witnessed something amazing and beautiful; the smooth black surface turned red, vivid and brilliant red, with five black spots in a quincunx pattern. _Like ladybugs_ , she gasped and suddenly, her mused returned.

She _knew_ what to call her alter ego and quickly, designed the suit. A skin fit spandex, for flexibility and ease of movement, and if she was going to stay cramped in her seat designing, it would lessen the cramps. Since she also had to remain anonymous, she decided to go with an old and much loved hairstyle that, for some reason, helped keep her inspired; twin pigtails. Still, her blue hair could be a dead giveaway, so she decided she would ask HawkMoth if he had some quick spray hair paint to perhaps turn it a shade darker or maybe just black. She would also leave her fringe, but with less hair, and maybe some black extensions to make her mand a bit longer . . . she was thankful that she could at least work some of those issues out, if she won herself a place in the project, that is.

Marinette could only hope, her heart once again on the line in her work.

Now, she was ready to face the fashion biz as Ladybug, in a hailstorm of red.

* * *

Fortune smiled upon her when she received an answer to her preliminary designs and given a month to make them.

A week on her Ladybug design, working with the spandex on a way to hide the seams, the zipper line and adding a black turtleneck to hide the zipper's location beneath. Using the same spandex, she made some tabi shoes, with red soles. Since she was used to having her purse with her, she decided to shake things up a bit with a small, movable pouch that she (and her parents) made out of a hallowed out yoyo — painting it like a ladybug of course — in case it ever fell, to be around her waist with a red, elastic string, and added secrets to its interior to keep tools of the trade safe; pins, needle, thimble, among others. The center spot in the yoyo was magnetized, just in case, and while it still worked like a yoyo, the string doubled as a measuring tape. For a mask, she used the spandex fabric and cut it out with seven black spots that were in a symmetrical design and cut out two of those so the waterlines of her eyes were colored black because of the fabric; she didn't think it would be wise to use makeup, seeing she would likely be running about. Using an elastic red band, she made sure she could adjust its length and for it to be flexible and not too tight.

Overall, it was perfect.

Cat Noir's had been relatively simple. Faux leather, with some metal for no other purpose than decoration. Zipper at the front, attached to a big, golden, kitty bell she had managed to find at a pet store; it had fallen from one of their merchandise, which had been bought _without_ bell. She felt blessed for all those small details. His had pockets because, well, the zippers could be added without hurting the overall design. She made it so the gloves had claws on the fingertips and the boots had: a hidden wedge, silver toes, and paw-shaped treads. The belt wrapped around his waist and used the buckle to come out from the back, like a tail. The hardest part, was threading it with silver nanoyarn, and figuring out a way to add the receptors.

During that week, a cousin from China arrived with a pair of _Necomimi Brainwave Cat Ears_  and a engineering degree. With his help and the technology from the Necomimi, he adjusted one of the reading chips to suit the tail, and managed to turn the other, into two distinct chips per ears. She was amazed with his craftsmanship and easy talent, and hugged him for his incredible and amazing help. Since the suit was skin-tight, the tail was rather simple, while the ears would require a bit more ingenuity on the sensor placing; beneath the mask. When it was time for her cousin to leave, she actually cried a bit, hugged him tightly at the airport, thanking him profoundly.

"Marinette, as long as you don't forget the basics," he had taught her a bit, enough so she could fix those in case of trouble, "you should be fine."

"Thank you for everything Zhang," she replied. "Give my great-uncle Wang a warm greeting from my part."

"Grandpa Wang wouldn't have forgiven me," he supplied with a chuckle. "When he learned that his favorite great-niece was trying to mix electronics with fashion, he called me."

"And I'm in his debt, and your," she answered, bowing her head softly, surprised when the young man pecked her temple.

"Family means," he intoned clearly, "no debts."

That being said, he said bye to Sabine and Tom, before turning to leave. Marinette waved at him, tears spilling from her eyes. Part of her wanted to learn more about her heritage, maybe she could travel over at some point. When they returned from the airport, Marinette found herself at a crossroads; her suit, done, cat suit, done, only the mask remained, and she was hit by another block. Only week and a half left.

She spent the entire week working dilligently. Unfortunately, the block remained and she currently had close to 72 hours left, and more like 50 because she needed sleep in order to function as a human. Not for the first time she wished she could hit her head but previous experience taught her such course of action usually ended in pain or dizziness, or both. She didn't have time for any of those right then.

She worked at the bakery, perfected Cat Noir's with the addition Master Fu gave her, which was a black ring big enough to be worn over the gloves. She had, with great care, taken the claw off and then placed it back on, with the ring in place; ring finger on the right hand. That last detail, was enough to make it perfect by her book. The mask was faux leather and had an elastic band like hers (but black), in order to keep it in place. The mask was the last detail that she had done with Zhang, it was were the ear receptors were hidden and therefore, the mask and ears were to be worn together. She even went as far as to add a green filter to allow for some night vision, though it was to a lesser extent and removable. With those small details added, it was complete, while hers had been perfect all along. All hers was missing, was the small details that wasn't part of the suit, but part of her Ladybug persona.

But that blasted mask, HawkMoth's, threatened her peace of mind and overall health, seeing as she was a potential hazards to herself, since she wanted to bash her head against the nearest wall.

" _Maman_ ," she groaned, sprawled very much like she had been last time this had happened. "I have, once again, lost my inspiration."

"Should I burn another two incense sticks?" Sabine asked, humor lacing her voice.

Marinette raised her head a bit, just enough to give her mother a soft glare. She huffed a bit as her mother placed her breakfast on the table before leaving to help in the bakery. Although the contest began at the start of summer, it was already, almost the end of it. Due to her interest in entering the contest, her parents allowed her to focus on that and not help around. That didn't mean that she didn't, the manual labor was a cathartic distraction and a good way to decompress from all the pressure. But, since she was simply using it as a way to procrastinate, she wasn't allowed to help anymore until she was done with what she was missing. She would finish what she had begun.

The blunette pouted to herself as she munched on her pancakes just for her face to change expression; _Dieu_ , her mother was a saint and had the secret for the ambrosia, and used it on her pancakes. It was delicious, and a reason for Marinette to motivate herself. Sabine wasn't one to cook sweets when they lived above a bakery, so she was clearly trying to give her daughter a push. Once she was done, savoring each single bite as she always did, she washed the dish and cutlery, as well as her glass, which had been filled with orange juice (twice). Now, not one to postpone the inevitable, specially when it would only give her disappointed looks from her parents, she sighed and got ready to leave. Taking her blazer just in case, she wore her own original design, a grey shirt with a pink flower pattern, and short jeans with soft pink ballet shoes. She allowed her bangs to fall over her ears (as usual) and her hair in a bun.

" _Merci_ , _maman_ , _papa_ ," Marinette said, giving her 'rents a kiss to the cheek.

" _De rien_ ," Sabine replied with a smile as she received her kiss before returning it.

" _Pas de problème_ ," Tom answered, kissing his daughter's temple. "Don't be out late, okay?"

"Promise _papa_ ," she replied with a tender smile.

"No earrings?" Her mother questioned softly, but was pleasantly surprised when the girl pulled her bangs back while shyly showing the black studs. "Ah, show them _ma fille_ , it'll help."

Smiling at her mother nervously, she decided to pull both her bangs behind her ears before leaving. Once out, she had to make a conscious effort of not undoing it and keeping her ears exposed. Walking around, she first stopped by her secret garden; it was simply a very nice, not too green, space with a beautiful view of the Eiffel Tower. She had a sketchpad at hand, and while it helped her come up with new and crazy ideas, it didn't quite help her with her current problem. Sighing, she decided she should go elsewhere for inspiration. At first, she just walked without purpose or destination until, that is, she realized where her feet were taking her. It would probably be weird, but she was already there.

After standing there for five whole minutes without moving, as the last time she had been there, she was startled and jumped at the voice behind her.

"Ah, Sabine's girl," Master Fu looked pleased to see her, for some reason. "You've been standing there for more than a few minutes already," he began, motioning to the door, "why didn't you knock or ring the bell?"

"Oh, uh — em, Master Fu," she bowed in greeting, "sorry — sorry. I just, don't really know . . . what I'm, uh — doing?" She gave him a confused and nervous smile. "Oh no, wait! I mean, I — I came to say thank you."

"I see you're wearing the earrings," he said conversationally as he opened the door to his place, "come on in, Marinette, and have a seat."

She went in, closing the door timidly behind her. Looking after him, she noticed he was in the kitchen, so she nervously decided to simply sit. It was a traditional small table, in the west it would be called a coffee table, but in the east, it was for dinning. Sitting over a cushion, on her knees, she tried relaxing, but the posture was one that kept her back straight. Before she could start questioning herself, he arrived with some tea. With care, he served her and gratefully, she picked the cup and took a sip. Both, the aroma and taste, were soothing, the temperature just right. When she opened her eyes again, she noticed the man had left, and as she looked around, she found him returning with a book.

"It has been a long time, since you visited," he murmured, offering her the book. "Last time, you sought more ideas than the Chinese Zodiac for your plushie collection. I love them dearly, by the way."

Marinette was at a loss, and when she looked at the book she gasped. She suddenly remembered, she had been working on her first collection, the plushie collection. Besides the 12 Chinese Zodiac, she had also made Tikki, the impersonation of creation and good luck, Plagg, destruction and bad luck, as the core; they were the yin and yang that held everything in a perfect balance. Surrounding the center, were five other elements that she had added for fun. Nooroo, as the representation of transmission, a butterfly or a moth, that could go anywhere and were actually found everywhere, the ones which can communicate better and more naturally. Wayzz, the turtle of protection, because it reminded her of the man before her. Trixx, the mischievous embodiment of illusion, traditional to the Japanese folklore legend of the Kitsune with nine tails. And the other two, were done for fun, not for a particular reason; Pollen, the Queen Bee, and Duusu, the Peacock Beauty.

Before she could read what was written, to remember her inspiration source, a sound distracted her. Master Fu had opened a closet and there, were sixteen mini plushies. Forgetting the book, she stood and went there, gasping as each brought her memories. 12 Chinese zodiac representatives, and four of the flower petals, the yin yang minis still in her possession. Only the turtle was missing, and she saw it on the man's shirt pocket. It warmed her heart.

To realize it all began with a pen pal exchange, the misfortune of the other and Marinette's balancing fortune. . . . She was a Ladybug, they were a black cat, but they still became friends. Her pen pal, they had a single friend their age and their own mother, while Marinette had her parents. What she didn't know, was that to everyone in her class, she had to belong to everyone; the way she saw it, she was too shy to connect with others. It was the reason why she had made Nooroo. Reason why she treasured her friendship with Alya, when they met at thirteen.

"So, are you any closer to figuring out what you came looking for?" Master Fu inquired, snapping her from her memories. At her big, confused, bluebell eyes, he smiled. "You had been looking for a way to connect with your heritage, and was walking all over the neighborhood; mind you, it isn't a bad one, but it is never a good idea for a child to walk alone."

"You found me when a stranger approached," she remembered with a gasp.

"Indeed, and we talked a lot about everything," he motioned to the book, "and yet, nothing."

She approached the Nooroo plushie, held it close. It felt like reuniting with an old friend. "You were the one who taught me the knitting trick."

"You were the one who gave me your first collection," he supplied, looking at the plushies. "Or, well, the miniature versions."

Marinette giggled. "I only ever got Tikki and Plagg up to plushie level," she whispered, petting Nooroo, "I still sleep with her."

"I am sure your friend treasures him as well," he replied in kind, smile in place. "You, however, inspired me too."

Hesitating briefly, she decided to take Nooroo along, and sat back on her previous seat, sipping what she assumed would be cold tea, but was still warm against all odds. She didn't have to wait long though; Master Fu returned with a beautifully carved, octagonal box. Opening the lid, he showed her a five-colored petal flower, in the center a yin yang circle. On each petal, were delicate trinkets; orange, an orange with white tip, tail pendant; yellow, a yellow hair comb with a bee at the top; green, a green turtle shell inspired bracelet; blue, a peacock tail hair brooch; the last one was purple, a butterfly cloth pin, a very elegant brooch with four delicate wings and at the center, what could be taken as a rhombus amethyst.

"They are beautiful," she gasped, and he smiled.

"You inspired them, Marinette," he stated simply, before taking the butterfly brooch and giving it to her. She could only stare back with wide eyes. "I can see that Nooroo is needed for your latest inspiration, so consider this another gift."

She smiled sweetly at him, and surprised him with a hug. "I promise to not forget this place and return often," she swore.

He chuckled softly. "You will only find this place when you need it," he cautioned her.

Marinette stopped the hug to look at the man. Seeing his seriousness despite his smile, her mouth turned dry.

"Then I'll make sure I need to see you often," she said clearly.

Master Fu smiled widely at that. "I'll take that as a promise."

Back at her place, Marinette returned with one mini plushie, one exquisite and elegant brooch, and the right material for the mask. The next day, her parents found her asleep in the kitchen table, and one beautiful mask done. It was clearly meant to cover the majority of the face and neck, the color of liquid silver. It would allow for an easier show of emotion, and had an outline of the Gabriel Brand butterfly logo over it. The fabric was breathable and comfortable, with stretching capabilities. Once she was done, she began wondering if she should do one such mask for her character, but sadly, it was too late to actually try to do it.

Perhaps, that was for the best.

* * *

"You mean, I _must_ take on this Alya girl?" Gabriel scoffed. "This is meant to be a fashion show, not just reality TV!"

"Monsieur Agreste," Nathalie, his ever faithful assistant, began, understanding but needing him to see further; why hadn't she gotten Emilie to do this one? Right, she and Adrien were having a field day at the science museum. "Please, consider it a boon."

"How is it a boon, if she doesn't know anything about fashion!?" He cried in exasperation.

"She does, sir," at his dubious look, she sighed and offered him her tablet; at his surprised look, she continued. "She runs the _Project Miraculous_ blog. She researches the information and offers it to the public, teaching others about terms that only designers are privy to, making it accessible."

He couldn't deny that, even he knew how useful the PMB was for publicity; hell, he had even made anonymous contributions so the site wouldn't shut. Their glossary was almost as complete as a fashion design book, and he had an inkling that it was mademoiselle Dupain-Cheng who made that possible.

"She could actually be the one who works with us from within," Nathalie said, wincing a bit as she had no idea how to truly sell Emilie's. She did slide to a following screen. "Madame Emillie suggests this approach."

"Have you read this, Nathalie?" He inquired, going over it in detail, seeing as it came from his wife.

"Pardon, Monsieur Agreste," she whispered, "I confess I do not fully understand the idea."

"It's basically having one of them trying to unmask them all," Emilie said as she entered, Adrien at her side still excited about all the science. "We had fun."

"Clearly," Gabrielle muttered, eyeing his son as he talked a mile a minute, "perhaps, _too_ much fun.

"I approve of the idea," he stated loudly and clearly.

Adrien stopped, looked around, and gave his father a chagrin expression. "Sorry father."

"Not to worry son," he replied with a sigh; those two were uncontrollable. "However, tomorrow is back with diligence."

"Yes sir!" Adrien said with strength.

"I'll schedule our next outing for two weeks," Emilie told her son with a wink.

"Two weeks?!" Both Agreste males cried in unison, the oldest in outrage while the youngest in excitement.

"You must do well in your tests, else no more outings," Emilie conditioned severely with a frown, before smiling widely, "I'm sure you'll do fabulous."

"Oh dad, is this for real?" Adrien asked his father, knowing he could undo any of his mother's promise.

"Fine, but you must do exceedingly well in your tests," Gabriel said sharply, displeasure evident, and while his son went on with joy, he grumbling enjoyed the sound. "Nathalie, schedule a meeting with mademoiselle Césaire and her parents."

"If her older sister wishes to come along . . ?" Nathalie inquired softly.

Gabriel debated his answer as he watched his son and wife leave his office. After some careful consideration, he decided to allow it. "Fine, although her parents should be more than enough, and it cannot be only the sisters, either parent is fine as long as one of them is present."

"Yes, Monsieur Agreste." That said, Nathalie left the office as well.

Gabriel could only sigh, but agreed that it was a good exchange. The Dupain-Cheng couple didn't want their child alone in what's going to be, a definite hostile environment. If Marinette had at least one good friend with her, they would allow her to participate in the cutthroat show. The future designer was more than worth the dead weight, specially if they could employ her inquisitive mind and be capable of pushing it in the right direction.

Not only were Marinette's designs exquisite and rather simple, but when given shape, they were elegant. He had already given the ridiculous cat suit to Emilie, who was the only one who know who Cat Noir was, but he had already donned the mask done for HawkMoth. The zipper was cleverly hidden by a mechanism he already wanted to patent for exclusive use in his brand, and a simple collar could hide it. He didn't like how his expressions were no longer hard to make, but he could feel how it was a second skin, and didn't irritate it or felt itchy. He was certain that with this on, he would be able to go through the show without perspiring.

Emilie came in right then, and smiled at the look. "It is everything you've envisioned, isn't it?"

"It is more, _Mon Amours_ ," he whispered, showing her the brooch; she gasped. "She even gave me the name and address of the individual who crafted this, including her ladybug earrings and some other ring."

"You're going to look for him, aren't you?"

"As if you wouldn't," he retorted with a grin.

"Oh no, I would."

"Oh yeah?"

"M hmmm. I would leave them for you."

"Then I'll just have to get to him first."

They kissed.

* * *

"And the winner of this season's entries," the host, Alec Cataldi, began announcing. "Designing HawkMoth's current mask," Gabriel came out as HawkMoth, wearing the brooch and earning gasps and looks, since it wasn't a Gabriel Brand accessory, but he didn't mind, "as well as, and this is a first time occurrence in the _Project Miraculous_ show, Cat Noir's brand new suit!"

Cat Noir fell from the beams overhead, much to Gabriel annoyance. Several body guards began chasing the boy, who performed some martial arts Kung Fu moves with his classic baton - slash - bō staff, evading capture, as well as showing the versatility of the suit. Even Gabriel could admit that it was a work of art, despite the fact that the wearer wasn't treating it with it's due respect. If it had been Adrien, he would have behaved, but this kid with longer and messier hair, couldn't be Adrien. Who knew what was the real eye color behind those ridiculous contact lenses.

Adrien, who was actually Cat Noir, reveled in the freedom of the mask; he could do every single outrageous thing he wanted, that his father would never figure out and he would never be held responsible for it. He was also surprised and happy with his current leather suit; he was also glad that his mother knew of a shampoo that made his hair puffier, which meant he could hide it's length with volume. Oh, and the ears and the tail, those were a dream come true. He could feel the twitches and slight movements, and he could swear they amplified sound for his benefit. Or maybe it was just his wishful thinking. Either way, just as he showed the guards his tail, this one twitched and moved as well, standing on end when he tensed at the feeling of one of them trying to jump him. He evaded. Ha! The suit was amazing! Even the ring, which held nothing fancy, made him feel as though it was all his.

"For the tenth season of _Project Miraculous_ ," everyone turned as Alec presented the last contestant, "the _teen_ season, as everyone likes to call it!

"Introducing . . ." the sound of the drum rolls was heard, " ** _Ladybug_**!"


	3. First (known) Challenge

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Starting the week at the Project Miraculous Condo — short time skip. The tender coexistence that has been balanced and achieved at the Condo is being shaken by a strange new addition; Marinette shares a moment with Cat Noir, and Adrien, and we get to witness a backstage exchange as she turns into Ladybug. How will this affect the show as a whole? Also, did somebody say school?!!?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> If some of the spelling is weird, it's because I'm using the official wikia names.  
> Also: I feel like Marinette is a bit OoC in her interactions with Adrien.

> _Legends speaks of a terrifying story, in which a boy suffocated both of his parents in their sleep to try and gain some freedom. Not much is known of this legend, not even if it, as many others, possesses a hint of truth. All that is known, is that the boy, was never seen again. He would some times appear as a vengeful spirit, out to hunt down parents for no apparent reason. Other times, when a child says they wished their parent wasn't there, the_ Bubbler _would come and asphyxiate the offending parent, leaving the child but a sad orphan._
> 
> _Other stories spin it around and say the_ Bubbler _takes the child away. All in all, it's mostly a story told to little children, warning them of the dangers of speaking wistfully out loud, for a wish they could very well, come to regret. And that is the one constant in these stories; the child, always does regret it, whether they were taken away, or left orphaned._

* * *

"Wow, talk about some strange myth," Alya said, perplexed. It was a Sunday at the Condo, with only eleven kids left, not counting the infamous Cat Noir. It had already been several weeks, and Marinette looked weary. "Mari, you getting enough sleep girl?"

Alya's concern was evident in her hazel eyes, but the bluenette simply yawned and laid her head against her best friend's shoulder, little frown clouding her face, making her adorable.

"I don't like that story." She stated with a pout, before yawning again.

Others also began voicing their concern for her, task forgotten.

"Maybe we should get her to bed." Rose commented with worry.

"Heck, maybe she should go to her 'rents next weekend," Juleka added; it was common belief that Marinette had already been taken from the competition, but this season no one was revealed and wouldn't be, until the very end. "I mean, she deserves a worthy rest."

"Marinette?" Nathaniel asked, making the girl in question snap her head.

"What?!" She asked with alarm.

"Now you've done it!" Alix hissed.

"Yeah man," Kim added with a grimace. "If it's obvious she hasn't gotten sleep, then let her!"

"Then we should get her to a bed," the redhead replied fiercely; even those who watched from their TVs caught on to his infatuation with the bluenette. "I'll take her."

Everyone began objecting, with Alya frowning and placing a possessive arm over her friend who had, somehow, quietly move to sit at the foot of the couch, staring intently at the piece of paper containing their latest challenge. Anyone had yet to notice.

"While it may be evident that she's exhausted," Max began, speaking loudly, "we all know the house rules; no boys can enter a girl's room, no girl in a boy's room."

It was only when the girl in question spoke, that they realized she had moved. Even if she was at their center, they worried more about her figure within the group as the main designer of the co-op joint efforts, than about her; or so she thought. That was also something different with **teen** season, that _fashion designers must know about team work, for even if I am one and I work alone, it was only possible after I came out as a designer; that's not something anyone who had previously participated in the show, can say yet. Not many people can do what I can_ , to quote the great Gabriel Agreste directly. It was one of the reasons why, even if they weren't able to join the fray as their alter egos, they could still offer advice and support as themselves, and no one could be sure whether they were still the competition or not — it meant that Marinette could still lead with her killing designs for the co-ops.

"I don't wanna do it," Marinette stated with deep offense and drowsiness. "Not every adult it worthy of being a parent, not every parent who doesn't behave as an adult is bad, and blaming the kids — why is it the kids' fault!?

"I mean, it never made sense," she grumbled in the end, starting to slur her words as she finished speaking.

"Mari," Alya was the first to recover as everyone else froze at the apparent way the bluenette didn't seem to realize they spoke of her, as if she wasn't there; in a way she wasn't, "maybe you have a fever?"

"I agree," Cat Noir said, but what he agreed with was anyone's guess; everyone frowned at the unexpected arrival. "I'll take her to her room, while you all figure out how to work with my challenge:

"Work as if the Bubbler, wasn't a villain," he stated, looking at all the other teens but the bluenette.

Marinette, for her part, gave another yawn, this one louder, and right then the sound of the door opening was heard. Everyone but Marinette turned around.

"Adriekins!" A loud and shrill voice cried.

It made Marinette yelp into the world of the living, heart thundering. She wasn't the only one with a weird reaction, Cat Noir's tail stood on end and he jumped to the vacates seat of the bluenette, hissing in displeasure. If the suit was outfitted with body sensors and was fur instead of leather, Alya was sure it would be evident his hackles were raised. Everyone else stared in the direction; between them and the door was the foyer, the kitchen, and the dinning room.

"I'm not staying," he stated with a shudder, and found a perfect excuse in the, already nodding off, Marinette. "I _did_ say I would take her to her room and not to worry, I'll be a gentleman."

"What gives you the right —" Nathaniel began, but more cries interrupted him while Cat Noir simply scooped the girl. "Hey!"

"I said, I'm a gentleman: I won't do anything unsavory," he stated firmly, holding the bluenette in a princess carry and already on his way. "Not to worry, I wouldn't dare hurt any girl or boy within these walls."

" _Adrien_!" The name was cried out in anger.

While they had all been speaking, the owner of the voice kept calling for, what anyone would have guessed, was their pet. Just as the cat left the living room, in came a young blonde. Chloé Bourgeois, the mayor's daughter. Behind her was none other than Nathalie Sancoeur, Gabriel Agreste's personal assistant.

"Uh, what's going on?" Aurore demanded, with Mireille holding her hand; they were the only ones who hadn't been crowding on the sleeping beauty, knowing well how badly Marinette would have taken it. If the bluenette had realized how everyone had been behaving, she would have blushed and complained a bit before huffing off, and by then it was anyone's guess if that would or wouldn't happen. "And what is _this_ individual doing here?"

" _I_ , am now participating in this _Reality Show_ ," Chloé answered, voice self-entitled, "you can thank me."

"Mademoiselle Bourgeois," the voice of Gabriel Agreste interrupted the bickering; he spoke from a tablet that his personal assistant held, "need I remind you the terms?"

"No, Monsieur Agreste," Chloé replied demurely, thoroughly chastised.

"Very well," Gabriel said, before the screen went off.

"Everyone," began Nathalie, "even if I'm sure you all know, I'll still make an official introduction.

"This, is Chloé Bourgeois, the mayor's daughter," she began. "She has been granted access to the condo, and can watch from the booth as you all work on your projects, joining in the co-ops."

"Wait," Alya began, frown in place, "since when can contestants join _after_ the season starts?"

"Since when does Monsieur Agreste explain himself?" Nathalie asked back, and the girl wisely backed down. "Besides, Chloé isn't a contestant, she simply wants to see you all working from close up."

"You mean, she's a Ladybug fan," Alya realized smugly.

"Oh, as if I'm the only one?" The blonde sassed back, arching an eyebrow. "I see many wearing pigtails; I'm at least still rocking my own hairstyle."

"As do I," Alya replied back, rising her own autumn brow, "yet you don't see me bashing their way of showing support."

"Care to stop bickering?" Nathalie inquired with a remarkably bland face, making her unimpressed look even more evident. "Now, please welcome Chloé, make her feel at home." Finishing her job, the woman turned around and went back to the door.

"No — wait a second!" Chloé shrieked, much to the pain of all in the vicinity. Nathalie was, of course, impassive, and simply turned around without showing anything. "You said Adrien would be here!"

"If he isn't here, there's nothing _I_ can do," Nathalie answered smoothly. "I am not the boy's mother, Madame Emilie isn't here herself, and everyone knows that they're always together."

It was true, the two tended to model on the same pictures more often than not, and even when they weren't, everyone knew that she went to his classes during his homeschooling hours. Despite how it might have sounded, Nathalie found herself drawn to those two, sometimes feeling as though she were a second mother to Adrien, as Emilie's husband because, well, the man always had her do everything so he could focus on his designs, and that was ok. Nathalie cherished her relation with Emilie and Adrien, more than the one she had with Gabriel.

Having finished saying her piece, she turned around and left, ignoring the calls from behind. She owed nothing to the Bourgeois, her allegiance was with the Agreste family.

Once outside she, like the boy's bodyguard, knew the real identity behind the cat mask. Back inside the car, the man took a look around the block, parking on the street before ending back at the front door. There, they waited.

* * *

Cat Noir was at a loss. Once in the room, he noticed it was the one room that had never been accessible before. It had a loft where the bed was, a desk for designing on the 'first floor' and even two mannequins. It also had bookshelves filled to the brim.

After leaving the girl in her bed, he looked at the collection with interest. Many of the fashion and design books, he was sure, were from his father, although there were clearly several that were hers. There were even some literature books, and although he was surprised and impressed that his father had willingly allowed his collection to be loaned during her stay, it amazed him that some of his mother's romance novels were there. He knew they were hers because he had seen them missing.

Just who, was Marinette Dupain-Cheng, for his parents to go out of their way to supply her with books?

Before he could think further on it, he heard the sound of the skylight opening. Startled, he turned towards the ceiling and saw feet leaving the room. Hurriedly, he went back to the loft and found the bed empty. Keeping the panic at bay and feeling more curious than anything, he went through the opening.

He smiled at the freshness of the air, the current playing with his hair, making his boyish features much more evident. Looking ahead, he found the roof to be secluded but cozy, a comfortable chair lounge with a blanket besides the trapdoor. The view was everything anyone could want in Paris; a beautiful sight of the Eiffel Tower.

"How did you get this room?" He asked in wonder.

The girl who hid within the blanket, answered in a tired voice. "I do not know. It's like my room back home, only with more interesting reading material.

"Did you know that we don't have magazines of any kind here?" She whispered in wonder. "I suspect they don't want us looking at clothes.

"Is it stupid that this being like my room, it makes me miss mine more?" Cat Noir turned and looked at the Eiffel Tower's reflection on those beautiful blue eyes. As if sensing his hesitation, she continued. "It's in the little details. I don't have this view, it doesn't smell like sweets, no comforting breaths from my mom as she sleeps, my father's familiar snores."

"You're homesick," he realized, and at her shed tear, he almost panicked.

"But I know if I leave now, I won't return from the comfort," she whispered, taking a shuddering breath.

"Come," he took her bridal style again, but she didn't even seem to notice, "I've got nowhere to be."

That being said, he went back down the skylight and directly jumped on the bed. Once back inside he delicately laid her down before closing the hatch. Then, he proceeded to settle with her and nestling her softly, he waited until he was sure, she was deeply asleep, humming a lullaby his mother sang. Once he was sure she was completely out of it, he left via the roof and fire escape, making way his out of the house and finding himself on the sidewalk in front of the car waiting for him. Giving them a sheepish look, he decided to simply enter it and not cause his father's employees further grief.

Once inside, the woman allowed him enough privacy as he shed the suit, back into his normal clothes, the black leather neatly folded and stored in a silver suitcase, locked in place. He wished he knew how _Flash_ from DC Comics did to store his suit on the ring. Shaking those useless thoughts, he gratefully received a spraying bottle and proceeded to sprinkle some on his hair before combing it, flattening it in the process and making it seemingly shrink.

"Thanks Nathalie," Adrien said softly as they went back to the Agreste mansion. "Also, do you know why my father and mother would help Marinette Dupain-Cheng with books for both, education and entertainment?"

"Perhaps your father recognizes her talent, and your mother knows he would only give her learning material?" She dared venture a guess before shrugging. "You can ask your mother, I doubt she'll keep you in the dark."

"Yeah, but she just might get on my case for being in a girl's room," he answered sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck self-consciously. "I reckon you're right though," he said with a smile, "you know them both pretty well."

He didn't notice her blush, but that was definitely for the best.

"So, she's who entertained you?" She asked after fixing her already immaculate hair.

"Oh, I just used the opportunity of a nodding-off Marinette to get her to her room while you made the announcement." He shrugged, blushing at her arched eyebrow. "I'm actually surprised Chloé hadn't asked for this in previous seasons."

"Really?" Nathalie inquired with an amused look, raising an eyebrow delicately, eyes filled with tender care.

He blushed. "True, there's Ladybug this season."

"I can easily see how Cat Noir is infatuated by Ladybug," she stated, ignoring his reaction to her words, "it isn't surprising how everyone else is as well."

He smiled at that. "Hey, before I just wore baggy black clothes with an eared hoodie and a rather pathetic, kato mask," he said with a shrug, "all the other suits, were a bit too revealing, and I rather not give father an advantage to figuring who is beneath all that.

"But Ladybug's Cat Noir design, that's a dream come true," he said with deep admiration and sighing a bit in contentment, green eyes shinning. "What amazed me, was how well it fit, as if she knew who I was, my measurements."

Nathalie only smiled softly to herself. "From Marinette to Ladybug? I wonder how your thought process works."

His eyes went wide and he winced in chagrin. "Ah yeah, it seems like she's homesick; it's just like her room, but she can tell it isn't, and that's affecting her." He gave her a look when he noticed she was taking notes. "I hope you don't force her to leave."

"Do you know who her alter ego is for her to have been taken off the show so soon?" She asked back without missing a beat.

The boy frowned. "I don't know," he answered honestly.

"It adds to the suspense, Adrien," she stated softly. "Even though several have already been eliminated, they can still provide support."

"Stoneheart  _does_ have an aptitude for minerals of any kind." Adrien nodded in understanding. "His abilities can help with accessories that the other contestants would like particularly crafted for their own designs."

"Indeed," she smiled at him, "besides, your father has a, well, I can only describe it as a _weakness_ ," he understood her reluctance for the word to describe his father, "for the contestant who is Ladybug, but not Ladybug herself."

His mind went to the fact that Marinette had her library filled to the brim with books from both, his father and mother, and that she had a room that hadn't previously been available but, Adrien only shook his head. It couldn't be possible, Marinette was such a klutz and shyly adorable, and clearly a follower — she couldn't possibly be the graceful, bold, _beautiful_ and the obvious leader of the season, Ladybug. Just thinking about that spandex clad girl, he shivered.

"So he's constructing the show around her so she grows to be an amazing designer?" He asked.

"If you know, why are you asking?" Nathalie teased with a smirk.

Just then they arrived at the house, and with a smile, Adrien got ready for dinner.

* * *

"I'm gonna ask for sushi," Chloé huffed, taking her phone out; her eyes went wide as a saucer when she realized something. "Why don't I have a signal!?"

Alya rolled her eyes at the blonde's shriek before requesting attention. "Guys, what about baguette sandwiches?

"Sandwitches?" Juleka asked with hope.

Mylène whined and pouted a bit, "can we go for _normal_ sandwiches?"

"Myl, we can make some sandwitches and some sandwiches," Ivan supplied, his usual frown changing into a soft and caring smile.

"Yeah, they don't all have to be sandwitches," Rose agreed.

But Juleka was already psyches up, "sandwitches!"

"We can prepare them however we like, right?" Aurore inquired, as calculating as usual.

"Come on Aurore," Mireille supplied, taking the dark blonde's hand within hers, "we can eat tonight with everyone."

Aurore looked at the tanned girl, giving her a once over with her eyes before nodding with a glassy look. "Just for you."

Mireille's smile went wide and everyone began preparing the ingredients no one else would want. Kim began making scrambled eggs; though others would also use them, no one would take their time to prepare them. Alix began working on the bacon, Aurore and Mireille chopped some veggies and Mylène worked on the chicken, making strips, with Ivan besides her preparing the pork. Nathaniel worked on the sauces, mainly the spicy ones while Rose worked on the sweet one. Max was in charge of the baguettes, his precision perfect for cutting the bread just the right length as well as horizontally. His moves were concise, a bit of oil on each half and on low fire to make the bread soft and crunchy. Juleka, despite her _witch_  themed food that she would be working on, was happy with just the fact that she could; she was currently working on the pineapple, that although none of them actually enjoyed on their sandwich, it was Marinette's favorite ingredient.

Alya would have been working on that, but she was stuck on  _Chloé_ control.

"What do you _mean_ there's no signal and WiFi!?" Chloé screamed. "How the hell does Lady WiFi work then!?"

All the watchers knew that, one resident, was there as Lady WiFi, who updated the LadyBlog with all the designs and working on how to unmask all the contestants. Those that she had already unmasked, were made to leave; she was the reason why everyone always shifted around and worked on not making it obvious who each of them were. She had managed to unmask two, whom were forced to leave both, house and contest.

"Maybe she has a working mobile, or a sat-phone?" Alya supplied with a roll of eyes.

"Lady WiFi, I demand your phone!" Chloé _cried_ , again.

"Of course she'll come forth," Alya smacked her forehead, "she'll gladly give it to you, placing herself out in the open and getting disqualified."

"What do you expect me to do about it?!" The blonde began with despair. "No one here is an expert chef; I'm _not_ eating anything made by you lot!"

"Then cook something for yourself," Alya suggested, smiling smugly at the face of outrage.

Marinette yawned as she entered the kitchen, looking much better; she heard part of the conversation. "Chloé, here's a tip," the bluenette began while she rubbed her eyes. At the glare from those clear blue, she raised an eyebrow in a rather unimpressed way. "Someone, in this room, is Ladybug so technically, she's cooking."

Chloé's mouth fell open; she hadn't thought of it that way. Suddenly, she was much more receptive to eating.

"You know, since Ladybug is cooking, you could help her," Alya added in a singsong manner, earning a glare. "It was worth a try." The whispered to her best friend with a shrug.

Marinette said nothing, but she became clearly wide awake and a single tear fell. "Guys, I — I wanna help!"

"Everything is almost done Marinette," Juleka said with a chuckle.

"Then let me try and make you _the_  sandwitch," the bluenette stated and without bothering to wait for an answer, she took command of the kitchen.

Everyone managed to finishing their respective duties and turned to watch her. She spent her childhood in a bakery, she knew every trick on the book. An equal amount of time helping her mother prepare their meals, she could be considered an expert cook, and had she gone down that path, everyone was sure she would have crushed that world. Therefore, fashion was her passion.

To start off, she placed a pot with water on the stove, with the fire on high. Taking a knife, she skillfully cut a slice of cheese, the right amount to make a hat. She placed the slice within the olive jar, allowing it to soak the juice; it was enough to turn the cheese slightly darker. She did the same for the cheese's slice that would work as the dress, using the ham to detail the face. On the bread, she placed enough grated cheese _within_ the bread itself with soft pressure and care, the same for the dress, before placing the cheese slices over them, the small ham as face, where the face ought to be, before placing over everything several strips of beacon. Once that was done, she turned to the pot with water; the steam was there, though it had yet to bubble. Using a skillet, she placed the prepared bread on it and maneuvered it over the steam.

Soon, the cheese had melted and several others wanted to join and thus, Marinette was tasked with preparing three more: a pumpkin for Nathaniel, a ghost for Kim, and an open umbrella for Aurore. The show being over, everyone began preparing their own sandwich and left for the living room. Only Marinette remained as she made one of those for herself; a cat. Next, she used a bit of every ingredient there was, and some sweet sauce. When she returned, everyone was waiting for her, dishes intact.

"Are _you_ the one who made those?" Chloé asked, pointing at the sandwitches; the shapes she wanted for each had seeped through and could be seen from the crust.

"Yes?"

"Make me one with a ladybug," the blonde demanded.

"What's the magic word?"

"Buzz on," Chloé replied, but at the unimpressed look, she frowned. Thinking better about ripping into the baker girl, she gritted her teeth. " _Please_."

"It wasn't that hard, was it?" Marinette teased lightly, before leaving her plate and going to the kitchen.

"Nathaniel has a long way to go," Alya teased the boy, who was slowly flushing, "seems like the alley cat might have one upped you."

"But I thought you said that was the usual image she would do," Rose added with a light frown, confusion evident.

"She's teasing Nathan," Juleka supplied.

Everyone laughed at the relieved sigh the redhead gave. Back in the kitchen, Marinette asked Chloé if she was allergic to any of the ingredients; she wasn't.

"Do you like olives?" She inquired.

"Yes."

"Do you like tomatoes?" She continued.

Chloé scoffed. "Is this an inquisition?" At the look, she growled at the bluenette. "Who doesn't!?"

"Rose," Marinette answered with a shrug.

More grated cheese, small cheese circles with olive juice, tomato slice over these, and bacon. The water was just warm, but it was still steaming. It took a bit longer, but by the end Chloé had a ladybug beautifully coloring the bread's crust. Staring at her ability, they returned to the living room, to find everyone had waited for them to return before digging in. Since she had been looking so out of sorts, they allowed Marinette to choose the show for the evening. They didn't have cable, but they did have Netflix. Going for a movie instead, she decided for  _Isn't it Romantic_  so even the boys could laugh. She also liked the teaching it left: love yourself.

"Mari, how did you make the green eyes?" Alya asked as she munched her normal sandwich.

"Pineapple," she answered with a shrug, taking bites from her sandwitch.

As usual, she thanked them all for their help and cooperation while working on dinner.

"Are we all ready for class?" Mylène asked with clear nervousness.

"What do you mean, class?!" Chloé demanded.

"Um, one of the conditions for hosting the teen season, was for us to still go to school in the mornings," Mireille said.

"Seems like Bourgeois tried to escape school." Aurore smirked.

"I'm sure Monsieur Agreste explained everything," Marinette said, looking a bit conflicted. "Although it's class with Bustier. You'll like her Chloé."

"Then it's physics with Mendeliev."

"P.E. is walking to the studio."

As everyone began filling Chloé in, Alya turned to her best friend. "Mar, you sure you're ok?"

"Yeah," she answered with a smile. "I should turn in early."

"Ok."

Marinette left them, but not before telling Chloé that not all of what was said was true, but that sometimes their teachers would go to far fetched lengths due to some misguided preconception that they couldn't take things seriously if they had agreed to participate in a Reality Show.

"In that sense, they might ask more out of you," she finished, before leaving.

* * *

She found herself on the roof again. Certain cat arrived.

" _Chaton_ ," she sighed, "why are you here?"

Instead of answering, he opened the skylight, took her in a princess carry, unceremoniously dropped her before falling after her and closing the trapdoor.

"I figured you would have a hard time falling asleep."

"I have a plushie, and she's more welcome company than you at any time, thank you very much," she answered while sticking her tongue out.

"I also want to be here to greet your newest house mate," he said mischievously. When she didn't move or even tried to, he was at a loss. "What's up with your book collection?"

"I am a girl," she began slowly, "I can read idiotic romance novels just for kicks. I _read_  idiotic romance for kicks."

" _That's_ what you're justifying?" He asked incredulously.

"Of course," she began in a harsh and cursing tone, clearly at herself. "I should explain why I, an aspiring fashion designer, has books about such topics. How could I be so _stupid_."

"Ha ha," he answered dryly, before lying down as they had previously. "So, _Purrincess_ ," she gave him an incredulous look at the nickname, "what's the name of the competition?"

She huffed and rolled her eyes, smile in place, "it isn't even a competition. _You_ , aren't even worthy of knowing her name."

"Oh, so plushies have gender now?"

She smiled further at the absurdity of the topic, and for some reason, he had a soporific effect on her. Before she realized, he was spooning her as she spooned her plushie, falling to sleep to his humming lullaby and what sounded remarkably like a _purr_.

* * *

The following morning no one was surprised to find the newest house mate, shrilling at the Camembert cheese that had been dripping on her face. Some went as far as demanding Chloé thank the pesky cat, as she called him, since it was because of him that they all managed to leave the Condo in time. Surprisingly, it was Marinette who was always the last one to appear, yet no one ever said anything to her. What was mildly surprising, was that Cat Noir either left her out, or simply forgot about her. After their latest interactions, the opinion swayed; the black cat _had_  to have a soft spot for the bluenette.

Once at school though, Miss Bustier took attendance list, updating it to add one Chloé Burgoise to it, and another name was given that had everyone surprised: Adrien Agreste. The class was spent with literature, giving them homework for the following week. Of course, once the lesson ended, they spent it in the library, working on the homework, before actually leaving for lunch. Marinette was hardly able to focus, seeing how her crush was now sitting in front of her and besides him, was someone who made her stomach churn: _Chloé_. It was enough to make her lose her appetite and it was close to driving her insane.

Lunch, in most cases, was an independent affair, going to their parents and such, but not for Marinette. She couldn't handle it, she wouldn't be able to leave and would just cry and be a mess in her mother's arms. Specially now that she had a chance of seeing Adrien, she wouldn't be able to live with herself.

This time though, everyone was invited to lunch, courtesy of Gabriel Agreste. It was as if her prayers had been answered; she wouldn't be tempted, she could spend more time with Adrien, and it was being paid for. Of course, there was no way to say it was done for her benefit but she would take it, and she wasn't the only one.

"So, Marinette," Adrien began, just to find her chocking on her drink; they found themselves sitting side by side. "Are you okay?"

"Ignore her Adriekins," Chloé began from his other side, but before she could say anything else, he spoke.

"Didn't you like the ladybug sandwitch?" He asked, and with that the blonde was silenced.

Marinette blushed deeply. "You watched the show?"

"Even ended up watching  _Isn't it Romantic_  after," he answered with a genuine smile.

"I'm — gift, birthday — _make_!" Marinette growled at herself and turned to face her plate, sadly moving her food about; why was she stuttering and mumbling her words!? "I, uh, I wanted to, umm, gift you a make — I mean, gift you a give I made — I mean." She sighed in frustration. 

"You should eat, Marinette," Adrien said sadly; why was she acting so different?

Marinette could burst in tears. Torn, between holding the sleeve of his shirt and just running away, she decided to hug herself. "I'm sorry, I don't know why I can't form coherent sentences in front of you," she whispered. "I made something for you, for your birthday."

Once she finished speaking, words that everyone had trouble understanding, she stood and left, tears in her eyes. Alya went after her, of course, and Adrien politely requested for their meals to be packed. When the waiter returned with those, he had finished eating and went to find the girls, giving them each their packages. Alya smirked and left them alone.

". . . discombobulated," Marinette muttered after a few minutes of awkward silence, and just hung her head, feeling like an utter, and miserable, failure.

"Hey, your last words were pretty solid, and that's one mean big word," he added, smiling cheekily at her. "I guess I, never expected for my presence to make someone so uncomfortable."

"Not uncomfortable, head messed up," she told him urgently, just to turn red. " _Je veux disparaître_."

"Don't," he took her hand on impulse, "don't disappear. You're by far the most interesting person I've met so far.

"You're always helping everyone, and everyone cares —"

"Just, my designs, not me," she stuttered, eyes wide and bewildered.

"You think Juleka would help with the pineapples, just for your designs?" He scoffed playfully, leaving her hand to mock punch her chin. "Alya couldn't, she's the unofficial spokesperson of the condo; if Chloé hadn't suddenly appeared, Alya would have worked on the pineapple while Juleka would have made the black cat bread with Max."

"Wow, I never pictured you as a watcher," Marinette said with surprise.

"Well, Ladybug is something else," he replied sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"You should — there's other," she growled again and looked at her feet. "Reasons to watch. Ugh!"

She hid her face in her hands and he chuckled again.

"Hey, want to know a secret?" She shook her head but he only grinned and cupped a hand to whisper to her ear. "Ladybug got me to watch, but someone else makes me watch the condo sequence."

She blushed as he stood while a limo parked by the curb. "You're leaving?" She asked with despair.

"Photo shoot," he answered sadly, before turning towards her with bright eyes, "want to come?"

"I — can't," she sighed sadly, "I must be at the studio."

So many things could be said: she was already disqualified; if her alter ego was already out, why go? Instead, he said nothing of the sort and just, gave it some thought while looking at the time.

"I promise, we'll make it back to the set on time." He also texted Nathalie, his mother and even his father. He grinned when he received a response. "My father says you can come, but if I make us late I'll be in a world of trouble.

"I'll resume being home schooled," he stated as he took her hand and pulled her. "No worries, you can eat in the car."

* * *

It was paradise. She even offered some input regarding his outfit. He beamed at her every time she did so, even if her ideas were often discarded, until the photographer himself suggested it again. At least, until the man stopped all pretense and simply agreed and actively sought her input. This thrilled her to bits. By the end, he was exhausted and she was buzzing.

"That was so much fun!" She chirped, clearly much more relaxed.

"Yeah, when you don't have to constantly change clothes," he gripped.

"Well, all you do while the rest of us design is sit there, look pretty," she blushed and lost her vernacular.

"Hey, it's interesting," he quickly said. "Ok, in my defense, it's either that or photo shoots."

She said nothing, just looked out the window. He hesitated; what had happened? He couldn't tell. The silence was heavy, abrupt, and sudden. Then again, he couldn't know what she was thinking, that she was in turmoil because under no circumstance, could she reveal to anyone but Gabriel, Emilie, and Nathalie, that she was Ladybug (they already knew), and she knew Adrien liked to model for Ladybug. Why did she have to be so unappealing as Marinette? _She_ , wanted to cry.

"What are you thinking about?" He asked quietly, but interested.

"The _Bubbler_ 's color scheme," she replied absentmindedly. "It's hard to coordinate such colors, wondering how they'll work around it."

The first phrase made her sound as though she was still competing, the second made him hesitant to such a conclusion. Once they arrived, she reverted to the meek and inconspicuous bluenette who shied away from him and couldn't muster more than a string of three words without coherence whatsoever. He sighed in disappointment. As he promised, they were on time — early even, and everyone witness as she left the car, with the blond quick to follow. Chloé sank her fangs, jealous that the bluenette had spent an entire photo shoot with Adrien.

"Dupain-Cheng isn't even worthy of having her first name recorded," the blonde sneered.

"Chloé!" Adrien gasped, for a moment his first friend was unrecognizable.

"Adriekins, you left me!" Chloé whined, draping herself on him. "She took you!"

"No, _I_ took her," he answered with a scowl and pushing her off of him; he turned but the bluenette had disappeared. "I thought you were better."

"Not cool dude," Nino huffed; he always made sure they had music about to focus, and DJd for the modeling of their designs. He frowned at Chloé before patting Adrien; his best friend's shoulder. "Not cool."

"Ah!" Chloé gasped. "I'm not the bad one here!"

"Chloé," Adrien replied, before motioning to her sides, showing that she was alone and everyone else had already rushed after Marinette, "you're the _only_ one here."

With that, he left, and unable to handle Chloé as it was, he opted to simply change into Cat Noir, leaving his changing room locked and leaving through the vent system. As Cat Noir, he tried to find Marinette, but she was already in her dressing room; his displeasure was evident with his tail, but he simply waited.

* * *

"Marinette," Gabriel spoke sharply, startling her. Sighing in mild anger and pinching the bridge of his nose, since he had taken his glasses off. "I am not displeased. I am merely, _curious_."

Emilie arched a brow at his word usage. She could count the times he had used it, barely enough to be a handful. Noticing Nathalie's reaction, she could tell they shared the same opinion; his interest in the girl was beyond his usual and casual interest in the promising designers he would hire.

"Oh, uh," Marinette stuttered, trying to gather her ideas. "Adrien invited me to the photo shoot. I offered some ideas, after a while the photographer asked me for input. It was so much fun."

Emilie chuckled, shooing the hairstylist and proceeding to making the twin pigtails herself. "I'm glad you had fun."

"Loads," she replied with a wide smile.

"Would you consider doing it more often?" Gabriel inquired.

Emilie chuckled, "slow down darling, don't scare her off," she said before all the phones rang with updates.

"Well, apparently she was photographed during the photo op and now the internet is in chaos." Nathalie said as she inspected the notification. "The LadyBlog is quick, as if Lady WiFi."

" _What_!?" Marinette nearly whined, evidently surprised.

"Let me guess, fans who now hate her," Emilie said with a sad sigh, finishing tying up the ribbon and right on time; the bluenette hid her face in her hands while shaking her head in pure denial. "Let it go Marinette," she whispered, "you're also Ladybug, take some of that confidence."

"You think they wouldn't hate me if it was Ladybug in the photo op?" She moaned.

Right then, something that the one man in the room had done only for his wife, he did for the girl in a gesture that took even him by surprise. He raised her chin, dried the fallen tears with his thumb, and pierced her bluebell eyes with his own grey-blue. Holding her gaze firmly, he waited for the tears to stop. A hiccup later, they did, although more were in the corner of her eye.

"Marinette," he began firmly, " _you_ were the one chosen, for your designs, your creativity, and your incredibly dexterous fingers. **You**. For that, Ladybug was born, but Ladybug _isn't_  whose design I enjoy watching come to life, they are _yours_. **_Yours_**.

"I may be at the top, and people may be wishing to bring me down that I'm certain you, with your charisma and gentleness, won't have to suffer from everyone as opponents, but cherished and esteemed by colleagues." When he was certain there was no risk of more falling, he wiped the cheeks for the last time. "You'll still have to handle the hatred, Marinette."

"That's not the reason for my tears, Monsieur Agreste," she whispered, unable to keep more tears at bay now. "I may be a child, and I may love to please, that even I know it is impossible for everyone to like me.

"It's just that, I fear they're right," she said, turning into a ball and leaving him at a loss. "I am too meek, too plain."

"Nonsense," Emilie hugged her tightly again, forcing their eyes to meet through the mirror. "Didn't you hear my husband?! _We_   **like** Marinette, more than Ladybug. Ladybug is nothing without Marinette, ok?!"

"Actually, it's fifty-fifty," Nathalie spoke up. "Jealous fans, supportive fans, yet they're all squealing at the cuteness.

"I'll admit, I might join the fan club," she murmured, not realizing that she was heard.

"See Marie," the use of the nickname made her blink, "and even if most people want to see the two of you engaged, you're both too young."

Marinette's progressive blush was quite a feat to watch. She ended up red like her spandex suit. It was an amazing thing to witness. What ran through her mind was a beautiful house with two kids, Louis and Emma — no, three: Hugo. And a dog! Maybe a cat? Nah, no cat, not a cat. . . . A hamster! She loved hamsters! It was only when the laughing face of Emilie blocked her view that she came back. The first thing she noticed, was a beat red Nathalie, and a mildly amused Gabriel Agreste. She went red again.

"Come," Emilie grinned, still chuckling, "let's move while you're still with us."

Gabriel and Nathalie left while Emilie helped her don the spandex suit. Once she was ready, rubbing warm water on her earrings to get her spots on, Marinette climbed the ladder to the small room from which she would exit on the second floor. This was done so the identities were kept a mystery. Nervous, for she always used the same room and came out through the same one, while everyone else always shifted about, she took a deep breath before stepping out, confidence seeping through her.

"Hey guys!" She greeted with a big smile.

Everyone cheered.

"Now that everyone is here," because, as always, Ladybug was the last to come in. Alec began hosting. "Lets's start! Now then, you all know what the challenge for this week is, so start working on those designs."

The drawing boards were all one next to the other, forming a circle, all placed in a way that they couldn't see their neighbor's. Those left were: Stormy Weather, Clement Climate, Timebreaker, Dark Cupid, Illustrator, Gamer, Princess Fragance, and Reflekta. Lady WiFi only appeared _after_ the designing phase, since the drawings could give them away. CopyCat, Stoneheart and Mimette, were the only former contestants who could still help the contestants. CopyCat entered with Cat Noir's previous suit, intending to go in and take the blond from his spot; of course with the use of his new suit, Cat Noir kept ranking top, and he was the only one voted out of the show. It was unknown whether he still lived at the condo or not. One of the other two were disqualified due to ineptitude or lack of creativity, that and that Lady WiFi had unmasked them made it easy to disqualify them.

Once in her seat, she ignored the world and focused. All the desks had an inclination degree, the top fitted with a web cam that recorded them as they drew. Cat Noir prowled about, opting for licking his hand as he watched his Lady work from behind. His flickering tail was amusing, and although he prowled about as he watched them all work, he still went back to Ladybug's to watch.

Somehow, Marinette's habit of sticking the tip of her tongue out as she worked, only came out when she was Ladybug. To be fair, whenever Mainette drew, she was either in a cam-less sanctuary, or talking with the others, which meant she was also speaking her mind and not having time to show everyone her habit. By that point, she was sure she could do it in front of everyone, they would all think she was, simply, imitating Ladybug. Chloé wasn't allowed at this phase either, for the same reasons as Lady WiFi. They all could hear her complaining from wherever.

The contestants had a time limit of two hours per day; if they were quick, like Ladybug, they could be done and start the designing or, as she was doing at the moment, speaking with all or one of the support individuals.

"Hey guys," she greeted warmly, thankful for having them, "I need your help with the following."

She began describing the accessories she wanted. A jian sword scabbard, the sheath had to be yellow, a black throat with a red line in the middle, while the sword's guard and two-hand handle had to be a blue, and a ring pommel. Instead of a blade, it had to be a wired frame of it or a double helix sword.

" _Majora's Mask_?" Stoneheart said with a smug tone. "Didn't peg you for a gamer."

"Knowing of the game doesn't mean I've played it," she remarked with a cheeky grin and a wink. "I also need for the scabbard to hold soap film."

"Oh, the scabbard is the bubble container while the sword is the bubble wand." Mimette remarked; this time Ladybug winked at her.

"For the end of the week?" CopyCat asked with a light frown.

"It's doable," Stoneheart replied.

"She isn't the only one who is going to ask us for things," the other replied before kneeling in front of Ladybug, "I'll work on it on my own if I must, just so you have it."

"Really _L'Imposteur_ ," Mimette added, pulling the copycat away. "The likelihood of any of them requesting something so insane is absurd."

"And hands off the Lady!" Cat Noir hissed, acting possessive. Just for a light tug to his ear to make him back off. "Wait!"

" _Minou_ ," Ladybug used a tone she rarely used, and it made Cat Noir comply. "To whom, do I belong?"

"No one," he quickly answered.

"Then why do you act as though I'm _yours_?" She questioned, clearly not satisfied with the answer.

"Please be careful," Cat Noir pleaded.

"You seem to forget who made you these," she huffed, releasing her grip; at his sigh of relief, she raised an eyebrow. "I wonder what would happen if I asked HawkMoth to return me the suit. Would your CopyCat get another chance?"

But those three were back to planning the logistics. Ladybug gave all three the rough sketch she had made of the sword and they planned on it. When she was done, Cat Noir spun her around and offered her a beautiful, red, and rather huge, rose.

"I want to be the only one to touch you so," he declared fervently, before entwining the rose with her hair. At her rolled eyes, he continued. "I want to be the only one for you."

"Yet, you don't know me."

"I know enough."

"How can you say that?" Ladybug whispered, some of Marinette shinning through. "How can you know that we've interacted out of suit, if we're actually friends or enemies?"

He felt as though his heart was crushed. He could say nothing in that regard, because it was true; mainly because he couldn't say he had many friends. That was the last that was seen of him for the night. Even if she felt bad for being so harsh on him, Marinette couldn't help it; she loved Adrien.

* * *

Dinner time was the same merry affair, only Cat Noir appeared and requested for a cat sandwitch, just to be greeted with  _cassoulet_. Still, when Marinette fondly greeted him with a  _Chaton_  from her lips, he forgot everything that was bad and wrong, and simply decided to enjoy their company. After watching some cartoons, he took her to bed, as it was becoming the norm.

By then, the polls were going off the charts, specially with the new couples surging up. Those who didn't like Marinette and Adrien or Ladybug and Cat Noir, voted for Ladybug and Adrien or for Marinette and Cat Noir.

Not that all the house mates knew this, of course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WARNING: I am no cook, I profess to know absolutely nothing about cooking, all I want or ever cook, is pasta, and that includes Mac & Cheese; do not try the wacky ideas here described while a fictitious character cooks and expect anything less than a non-fictitious, perhaps inedible, mess


	4. Ignorance is Bliss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Taking on their latest challenge, the Bubbler challenge, Marinette and Adrien find themselves at a good point; why are Ladybug and Cat Noir having a fight in the middle of the set? No body knows, so can it be true that ignorance is bliss? Well, as the watchers that remain ignorant of the happenings behind the scene; there's no bliss in the ignorance of the irrelevant kind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I honestly got no idea how a Fashion Reality TV Show ought to go, and quite honestly if I start analyzing one I'm sure this won't be the same, and this is just for fun in either case; if you find a better way to mesh it all up, do let me know? I've watched some _Face Off_ and I'm using what I've seen in it to make this

There has always been a hint of truth to the saying, _ignorance is bliss_. Taking the masses as an example: they were ignorant of the fact of who was actually Ladybug; Marinette wasn't even considered as a possible Ladybug, and they were definitely blissful. Marinette herself, was happy, in her ignorance of: the polls, the life outside of the little bubble the reality show provided her, how others took her life — her _love_ life — as simply another part of the show.

Most of her ignorance though, was due to her sharp, single-minded, focus. She could handle her studies, then again it was a subject per day, per morning, and in a sense it could all help her in a way. Chemistry for example, the class of the day, helped with substances to add to a suit or in her case, how to make the soap film an efficient quantity for best bubble creation, given the length of the "weapon" she had requested for crafting. Why Mylène had asked her for her help, it was beyond her, but being able to be involved in her own project in a discreet manner, felt amazing.

Breakfast, class, study hall, lunch, free time, or in Marinette's and Adrien's case, photo shoot. The bluenette still couldn't believe it, and she would return to the studio feeling as if she was on cloud nine. She didn't have time to wonder if that would happen often, since when she entered her changing room Emilie would be hugging her and she would recount her joy dreamily, not realizing that she was speaking to the mother of her crush. With the way Emilie acted, it wasn't a surprise even though she didn't realize or even noticed it. Gabriel was, as his norm, just in the background with Nathalie, and after witnessing his wife handle the bluenette, he understood why. Emilie somehow helped her focus on the fashion at hand and not Adrien; then again, the reminder that Adrien was the one who would model her clothes often was enough to get the bluenette back to her single mindedness.

Then, as Ladybug, her focus would be once again back on her design; she no longer had time to think about anything else, and yet her parents were always in her thoughts. It was a tough act to balance, but she was coping. Since they were on the creation portion, Lady WiFi roamed about, their designs now behind a screen and besides a mannequin at the opposite end of the desks, and only the designer could step into the nook. There was one huge difference from all previous weeks though; Chloé.

"How can I help?" Her earnest eyes were new, but it was her suit that was the most surprising.

Ladybug stopped, tip of her tongue out and she frowned a bit, looking to the side with a glassy look. The tip of her tongue hid back inside her mouth as this one opened a bit; clearly surprised at the unexpected words. Ladybug had spoken about this with Emilie and Nathalie and even exchanged a few brief words with Gabriel himself, and with HawkMoth's blessing, Chloé was granted her wish.

"If my Bug-a-boo needs help, I'll be the one to help her," Cat Noir huffed with his chest puffed out; this was what finally jarred her focus.

"Unlike you _Minou_ ," Ladybug interrupted, "Chloé is here to actually help me, while you've always been here to play buffoon."

"Your words wound me, my Lady," he said as he placed hand over his heart, wincing; the love of his life just dismissed him and his actions as buffoonery.

"See? Now scram,  _chat de ruelle_ ," the blonde sneered before turning to the girl. "I came to the show to help you out, Ladybug."

"I don't need a pissing contest, _Minou_ ," she said softly, "I'll deal with this. But thank you for your concern."

After a moment of thought, she grabbed a chair and moved it so it was close to her work station. Once it was in place, she took the blonde and sat her down. Then, she began analyzing the suit. Cat Noir stayed close by, like a cat standing guard with tail twitching from side to side; both girls ignored him.

"Identical fabric," she muttered, not seeing the bright sky-blue eyes at those words, hand delicately skimming over the seams, "those who made it for you, are good."

Chloé's face fell. "Well, of course, they are the best money can buy," she said in a hesitant manner, not sure if she could gloat about the fact or not; she was there to help after all. "They're not as good as you though."

"Clearly," Ladybug acquiesced with a shake of her head, "my suit is designed so that you cannot trace the seams, and while yours does a decent job at hiding them, it becomes clear when the spots aren't evenly spaces." She looked directly and held those eyes with her own. "I have no doubt that if they knew exactly how to, they would be capable of doing it.

"As it is, however, it was just because of luck that I managed to figure out how." Having said her piece, Ladybug sighed and crossed her arms. "Let me ask you this, Chloé Bourgeois, how confident are you of being able to help me?"

"Very confident!" The blonde said, this time she was the one puffing her chest out.

"Then do you know why I'm asking you these questions when I could be using my designated creation time doing as I should, and _creating_  what without doubt everyone else will call, my newest masterpiece?" She asked with a roll of eyes, clearly not believing what everyone else said and making this evident, leaving Chloé at a loss. After an awkward pause, Ladybug continued. "Because if you're going to help me, I need you to understand something; my creative process works so differently, that during the first joint design, no one could keep up and I had to slow down.

"That's okay, perhaps I should face the fact that I don't think like most people do," Ladybug shrugged nonchalantly, while inside Marinette began feeling self conscious and with an urge to cry; that first joint effort had taken **_a lot_** out of her, and if it hadn't been for Alya and her constant presence, she doubted she would have survived. "I have made peace with it.

"Now, I need you to be sure you can help me," she stopped the blonde from speaking by raising her hand, "and if you are at a loss at what to do, you can either sit there and watch, or you can go and watch others work.

" _Watch_ them, Chloé, just watching," she warned, "if I'm going to win this thing with your help, it doesn't include hurting others."

Right then, Stormy Weather had another outburst and made Timebreaker fall. TB had been going around, leaving pins for all the other contestants. She was the fastest, specially with her wheels, and one of the conditions for her to have them, was to help out in that fashion. After that project, Chloé would do that

"Sorry," Stormy Weather said before storming off, just for Clement Climate to hurry after her.

"Seems like I don't need to do anything of the sort," Chloé replied smugly.

"And if you do something like that, I won't want your help," Ladybug said firmly, "Stormy Weather is likely having a bad day."

"Feeling _under the weather_ , perhaps," Cat Noir added, pouting as he was ignored.

"I would never — hey! Where are you going?" Chloé demanded, growling at being ignored.

"Allow me to help, TB," Ladybug said softly, placing a hand on the girl's shoulder.

"Thanks LB but, you have enough on your plate," TB replied with a sigh, just to give the dark-haired girl a hard look at the giggle.

"Trust me, I'll do this faster than you," she grinned, and at the challenging look, she used the magnetized middle spot of her yo yo to pick the needles. At the other girl's open-mouthed expression her smile turned wider. "See, told you."

Timebreaker chuckled, watching perplexed how Ladybug then took a cloth from within said yo yo and used it to get the needles off. Rubbing them, the needles fell to the container they had been in, these no longer magnetized.

"I would take my helmet off for you," TB said with a grin, "but I won't reveal myself."

"Good," LB winked, "I like the competition."

This stoked the fire behind those eyes, and Ladybug returned to her work station. Without even turning to look at the blonde still sitting, she proceeded to work on what could only be considered pads. After carefully looking at what Ladybug was doing, Chloé proceeded to cut out the other pad. Somehow, Ladybug kept her deftly dexterous fingers moving as she watched Chloé. Once the blonde was done, Ladybug stopped her work and went to analyze hers. Seemingly satisfied, she resumed tracing shapes on the pads' foamy material, outlining six different pieces. Chloé's face fell at being given a task, but then she smiled warmly, thrilled to bits at being trusted to do something by her idol.

The rest of the time was spent with them doing that, and once Chloé finished cutting the patterns, which were 12 in total, she began doing the pads. She was clearly much slower, in need of a thimble less some speck of blood fell on the work. She was clearly not used to it, and while she was painfully slow, she was also extremely careful, making sure to copy faithfully the ones Ladybug had already done. During the last fifteen minutes Ladybug, as was her custom, stopped working on her own design and went to work on a side project; everyone was curious as to what she was doing but no one bugged her. She had finalized eleven pads, all already tailored into another cloth sans one. Chloé, for her part, seemed to ignored the dark-haired beauty in favor of at least finishing one pad fully by the end of the fifteen minutes. In the end, the blonde stayed a few seconds longer after the buzzer had been hit, but she managed to finish.

Ladybug gave her a smile, "thanks Chloé. The reason why I agreed to this, is because if I want to make everything from scratch; I'm definitely going to need help. But, I need you to be conscious of something."

The idol then turned serious and held those eyes firmly. "Anyone in that house, can be me. You treat anyone badly, you could be treating me badly. Tell me, would you rather keep treating people like that and hurt me unintentionally, or would you rather treat everyone better and make our relation during these times, better?

"I don't want an answer, I want you to think about it.," she requested formally, before she was pounced by certain cat. " _Minou_! Get off!"

"No!" Cat Noir began petulantly, just to have to jump away as security aimed to grab him. He hissed. "I want some time with my Lady!

"Your generosity never ceases to amaze me!" He stated loudly, smiling widely.

Emilie was physically stopped by Nathalie and Gabriel. One of security had to stop Chloé from trying to catch the blond herself — it was possible she could hurt him physically — and despite it all, they only wanted to get him off the star of the show.

"I'm not yours Cat Noir!" Ladybug said strongly with a frown, huffing in displeasure.

"But, you're _my_ lady," he whined, and Emilie seemed to relax; he then gave the girl a working yo yo. "Another token of my affection."

She shook her head with an amused smile on her face, "I never realized that merchandise like this was going around."

"You like it?!" He asked with a glimmer of hope, and at her snort he looked crestfallen. "You don't?"

" _Minou idiot_ ," she teased, his eyes brightening but then a hit on his head left him confused. "I was just wondering where my royalties are."

She laughed then, amused as he picked the yo yo he had just gifted her from his head.

"You're really good with that huh?" He asked with a happy, relaxed, and over all, lovely smile.

Ladybug showed him her hollowed case, "it's from my very first yo yo," she told him with a happy smile. She then stood and dusted off her suit as best she could. "Now, if you'll excuse me. I got to go back to my normal, civilian self."

She turned and went to the center door from the wall where all the contestants appeared from. Hers, the designated center from the very start, place won by being the one who won the entering contest, and she had kept it despite not always winning. It would seem, that until someone won twice in a row, it would still be her designated spot.

Going down the ladder and wondering — not for the first time — just how the heck the building was structured, she arrived to her changing room. As usual, it was only Emilie, and between herself and the blonde, they got the extensions out, the hair rinsed and back to its natural blue color, before she began changing. She also used the opportunity to get the spots off her earrings.

"You seem to have a nice and peculiar relation with Cat Noir," Emilie said, earning a shrug.

"Eh, I think my interactions with him as Marinette have more weight," she answered softly, smiling when the woman began brushing her hair.

"Do you _like_ Cat Noir?" There was hesitation in Emilie's voice, but her hands were working their magic on the girl.

"How can I like him when I don't know him?" She asked back softly. "From what I can tell, from his actions and his words, regarding me in particular, that he's a sweet kid with a big heart."

"What about Adrien?"

"Adrien is so kind and gentle," Marinette replied with a dreamy sigh. "I met him before by accident; I think it was the library? It was raining, and I had forgotten my umbrella and —" she pouted at the memory, "— being my usual klutz self, I managed to get the umbrella he gave me to close on me. He laughed softly, I could tell it was genuine and as thanks, I gave him my lunch.

"Cheese filled croissant, the kind only my _papa_ knows how to make and never for sell, along with the first macaroon I made with my mom," she sighed with some regret, before noticing the surprised look. "I know. It's not a big deal but, it was his uninhibited laughter that captivated me, and when I later realized why he was so familiar to me, I began reading every single article about him." She sighed in contentment again.

Marinette had, however, misinterpreted the shocked look. Of course, Adrien had taken the bag and ran to the limousine. The photo shoot was for a specific new product his father had made, so both of, mother and son, had been requested. Gabriel had taken the bag, claiming it could be poisoned, and when he noticed it was a croissant, he wanted to throw it away; it wasn't part of their model diets. She had been so heartbroken for her son — it was the first time someone had given him something, sure in exchange for an umbrella, but not because he was the son of Gabriel Agreste and one of the youngest models in history, so she did something she had rarely ever done; fight her husband over their food. Emilie had, without regret, taken a huge bite out of that croissant.

She had to control the urge to finish it, and gave her son a bite. Outraged, Gabriel threatened with divorce, only for her to return the threat; she would divorce him if he didn't try the croissant. After he took a reluctant, small bite, just to follow it with another, medium bite, and Emilie gave Adrien the rest. Yet, her son chose to share it with Nathalie, who could do nothing but graciously accept. It was three years of searching, agonizingly and painfully, for the maker of those croissants. The umbrella was returned, left at the gate so once it opened, it fell inside, and that was their last lead. The macaroon, that Adrien also shared, had been delicious as well.

"Take the yo yo," Emilie said as she shook her head and her memories back, returning Marinette's hug as she left; she was always the first to return to the waiting room. "Gabriel made sure all the other contestants got similar ones."

"Can I get one of those and leave the gifted one?" She asked with hesitation. At the look, she proceeded to explain herself. "Maybe Cat Noir marked this one in a way that would allow him to know who I am without the suit."

Emilie smiled and gave her a new one, and the girl delicately placed the gifted one on one of the drawers in the changing room. As she left the room, the woman began thinking about her discovery. Somehow, she doubted the rest of the Agreste family would believe her. What was worse, and no wonder why they hadn't been able to find the right bakery; _Tom & Sabine Boulangerie Patisserie_ wasn't one that sold cheese filled croissant — then again Marinette said as much. If Emilie told Gabriel, it could spell trouble. She would try the _Emilie_ approach first.

* * *

"Dupain-Cheng," Chloé sneered as she left her changing room, "are you even on this show?"

"What happens," Cat Noir seemed to appear out of nowhere, "if it turns out Marinette is actually Ladybug?"

Chloé scoffed. "As _if_!"

"Allow me to remind you," he began with a roll of eyes, "that LB herself said she could be anyone who lives in the house; Marinette lives in the house.

"Are you willing to risk it?"

"Scram, _chat de ruelle_!"

"Your creativity astounds me," he retorted with a raised eyebrow, "really Chloé, even if my Bug-a-boo _isn't_ Marinette, Ladybug could _still_  get you off the show."

"Well, Marinette won't tell," Chloé snapped back, and before she could say anything else, she was interrupted.

"Right, since there is no way I could be Ladybug," Marinette huffed back, narrowing her eyes, "even if Cat Noir doesn't tell her, it's not like I know _who_ Ladybug is, thus not tell her!

"Do you expect me to keep quiet while you bully me?" The bluenette asked with sadness and urgency — to hell her secret identity, if Chloé answered with an affirmative, she would get her out of the house.

The blonde appeared to hesitate, then huffed when she saw Adrien's mom. "Fine, ugh, way to make me not be who I am!"

"If you are mean and a bully, then I guess you better show your true colors, because I'm sure Ladybug doesn't like that," Marinette said hotly.

"Oh I _know_ Ladybug doesn't like meanies or bullies," Emilie said, frown in place and hugging the promising designer from behind. "If I see you harassing anyone from the show, I'll pull you from it myself. Your father's endorsement was taken as merely a way of allowing him to save face, it isn't needed."

"I'm sorry Madame Agreste," Chloé mumbled. "Marinette was trying to get me kicked out!"

All the faces showed disappointment, and fearing her way of getting close to her idol would be taken from her, she snapped. With real tears, she cried out at them. "Okay, I was being mean, but I don't know how else to interact with others!"

"You don't seem to have a problem with Adrien," Emilie supplied, confused.

"Adrien is special, he can see the best in everyone," Marinette whispered, receiving a grateful look from who could be her constant tormentor.

"Yes," Chloé said, "he's been my only friend since we were toddlers."

"I never had someone like that," Marinette supplied, voice sounding hollow. "Then again, I have great parents who are always there," she unconsciously took hold of the protective arm around her, "but it makes me scared; I don't know how to interact with people my age."

"Aww Marinette!" Alya came running over, not put down by the blush on her best friend's face as she took her remaining hand; she didn't dare hug her best friend when she was being held by someone like Emilie Agreste. "Believe me when I say, we are all happy to have met you and be friends with you!"

"What she said," Aurore stated with a nod, placing a hand over Marinette's, which was being held by Alya.

Mireille was quick to follow and soon, everyone had their hands in, including Cat Noir's, hand which had a black ring and, somehow, a green paw print. After a while, even Chloé placed hers. Staring at all their faces, she could feel tears pricking the corner of her eyes. It was only when Emilie pressed her closer that she realized why she wasn't hugged. Freezing a bit, she relaxed far quicker than usual into the embrace. It felt so natural.

"Everyone," she began with a raspy voice and closing throat, "thank you, thank you."

Happy tears fell from her eyes, and she blushed when the woman pressed her lips to her temple briefly.

"Good job, Little Lady," Emilie whispered, before speaking clearly. "Everyone, you should all go back home."

"How about cooking  _Honey Glazed Roast Pork with Apples_?" Marinette asked eagerly.

Everyone groaned and she hesitated, until she noticed their smiles and then she beamed.

"Oh I'm so in!" Cat Noir said beneath his breath.

Emilie made a quick call before interrupting their cheer. "Make enough for four more," she told them, "that's one of Gabriel's favorite dishes.

That would be a first, for Gabriel Agreste to eat with them.

Marinette groaned then. "Talk about pressure."

Everyone laughed, not noticing how Cat Noir slipped from view and how, moments later, Adrien Agreste was in their midst.

"Are we really going to eat with them?" He discreetly asked his mother, still a bit confused by the overprotective stance the woman held Marinette in; he also found it odd how no one else seemed to question it.

"Didn't you hear what Marinette proposed to cook?"

That being said, they got ready to leave the premises and back to what the kids could perfectly call, their prison. Everyone had Ladybug-themed yo yos with them, playing with them in one way or another.

* * *

It became an evening to remember. All the kids, including Adrien (and thus Chloé) put in an effort. Nathalie coordinated all them, making their already synchronized moves feel synergic. Overall, a merry affair, with Marinette deftly acting like head cook; while they waited for it to cook, the bluenette tried to sneak back and check, unknowingly making them pause on the movie. They were watching _How To Train Your Dragon_ by Dreamworks, mostly because whenever she had time and TV privilege, Marinette would watch the movies. Everyone but Rose, Juleka, Mireille and Mylène would constantly tease her about it.

Once dinner was ready, they went to the dinning room and all began eating. Nathaniel and Ivan disputed over the spicy sauce, while Rose and Juleka shared the sweet one and began passing it. Emilie, feeling adventurous, tasted a bit of both, and while she passed the spicy one over to her husband, who raised an eyebrow at the motion, she used enough sweet sauce to accentuate the flavor. Marinette blushed. Adrien decided to imitate his mother and sampled both sauces and although he chose the spicy one, he also used just enough for flavor, not to drown the food in it. Marinette blushed further at that. She was unable to eat until everyone had already been served, and even had seconds. She finally understood something her father and mother said, about enjoying more cooking and watching others eat, than them eating themselves. It wasn't until Emilie passed Adrien another plate and he placed it over her empty one that she realized they had noticed she had yet to eat. She blushed once again. When the others noticed, they began teasing her and bullying her until she took a bite. Her eyes went wide in surprise, and Emilie gave her a smirk as she waved the sweet sauce by her side. Marinette smiled then and began eating with more gusto, but she remained quiet.

That was ok though, her smile said enough about her feeling happy. She didn't understand why Nathalie had insisted she sat besides Adrien, who sat in front of his mother, but she couldn't bring herself to question it. All she did was smile, and nod when Adrien included her, unless it was something embarrassing, then she would adamantly shake her head no. Nino, the DJ, had also tagged along, and being Adrien's best friend, he made it easier for him to converse with the others. Alya sat in front of Nino and besides Nathalie, and between them, they got the other two to share and enjoy themselves more. When dinner was over, Adrien and Nino were allowed to stay over as Gabriel, Emilie and Nathalie left for the Agreste mansion, and even though they had class the next morning, everyone decided to simply stay up and play games.

Quickly, it became a marathon, and everyone was playing  _Ultimate Mecha Strike III_ and aiming to be crowned victorious. Kim was boasting about Max's prowess, and although Marinette wanted to go to bed, she was dragged back by the girls.

"I'll take you on, Max," Adrien stated, and soon, a chart was drawn.

  * Alix vs Adrien
  * Aurore vs Nathaniel
  * Ivan vs Mylène
  * Alya vs Nino
  * Rose vs Juleka
  * Kim vs Mireille  
Chloé was left without, so Marinette was reluctantly made to compete.



"Just to be clear, the winner plays against Max," Adrien clarified, and everyone nodded in agreement.

"I'll crush you all!" Kim stated; the only one who had ever beaten him, was Max and he planned to keep it that way.

"Hey, don't just be mean against Mireille," Aurore snarled at him before frowning and huffing. "Also, wait until it's your turn, yeah?"

"Uh, Rose and I won't be playing," Juleka stated.

"We'll keep score and now, it can be divided in group A and B;" Rose began, "the winners of each group will fight Max, and if both are defeated Max will keep his title of undisputed champion."

"Alix, Adrien, your turns," Juleka said with a nod.

Adrien won with 13000.

"Girl's shouldn't be playing!" Kim taunted.

Aurore won with 10000, Ivan with 8000. The girl taunted Kim back.

Group B was: Nino with 9000, Kim with 12000, and Marinette with 11000.

"I'll bring you down!" Kim roared.

Marinette beat him easily, going up to 17000. Defeating Nino brought her to 20000.

Adrien also won against Aurore, who had tried her hardest, boosting his score to 18000. He also won against Ivan for a grand total of 20000.

Tied in score, everyone was eager to see their match, but Marinette easily agreed to play second, killing everyone's buzz of a game of rock paper scissors. At their insistence, she reluctantly agreed, and both of them ended in stalemates. Every single choice, was the same for both, even with their eyes closed. Everyone kept staring until Marinette refused to keep playing and went as far as threatening to leave the tournament all together.

So it was Max vs Adrien, and the blond won, score rising to 25000. Marinette then asked if she still had to fight, and Kim was the one who insisted she go against Max. So it was Max vs Marinette, and she devastated him, rising in rank with an amazing score of 30000, the highest any had ever seen. Afterwards, she continued playing against any who wanted to challenge her, mostly because why not? In the end, only she and Adrien were left awake, fighting it out. Once it became midnight, she rubbed her eyes and yawned for the nth time, and still being able to beat him.

"Bed time?" He asked softly, and she just nodded in answer, yawning again. "Well then, good night Marinette."

She blushed, then took something out and gave it to him, "happy birthday," she whispered.

Having said that, she left for her room, while he stared in wonder at the gift; it included a note: _I doubt I'll be able to tell you in person without making a mess out of it, so I decided to write this just in case. This lucky charm has been with me since I can remember, since I made it myself before I began designing. I hope it brings you good luck, and more years to come. Bon anniversaire, Adrien_. The bracelet was made with a red string, which was bent into a loop on one side in order to be tied onto a wrist. With nine beads: a light blue bead, a large pink bead, a small yellow bead, a small black bead, a square green bead engraved with a five-petaled flower, a sky-blue bead, a tiny red bead, and a second large pink bead slightly smaller than the first. An evidently recent addition, was a soft purple butterfly bead, clearly a Gabriel brand logo. It was simple, nothing that would end up selling for millions; in fact, he wouldn't be surprised if he found something like that at a sales bin. But to him, it was precious.

Unable to do much of else, he took it with him to the guest room he was sharing with Nino or, well, was supposed to be sharing, if it wasn't for the fact that Nino was sprawled with everyone else. He felt tempted to going to Marinette's room, but he wasn't Cat Noir; he didn't want to go to her to help her sleep, but for him to sleep better. He kept debating it.

* * *

The following day they had to get ready for math, and everyone had a hard time. For a surprising turn of events, Marinette was the first to be ready, blushing scarlet. Adrien was right next to her, looking awkward and sheepish. It was Nino who seemed genuinely surprised.

"Adrien, man, you're always late and here, up and perky, what a surprise!" The DJ said with a smile, before grinning and nudging the bluenette. "Hey Mari, our classmates say good luck, they're rooting for you."

"You mean her core supporters of her still being qualified?" Alya asked with surprise, before squealing in her most fangirl fashion. "I told you they were!"

"Yeah, they keep insisting that the final will be a one-on-one between the two of you," he did frown a bit at the tanned girl, "I had no idea you liked designing."

"I have talents," the tanned girl rebuked with a raised eyebrow.

"Um, you all need to get ready, if you guys want us to make it in time," Marinette said, still unable to process what Nino said about her former classmates. A car honked and everyone else yelped. "Breakfast is laid out!" She called after them.

"Hey, you ok?" Adrien asked her, but her eyes remained glazed over as he guided her out.

"I'm just, _shocked_ , that my former classmates, would be rooting for me," she whispered, turning to look at the blond and giving a pitiful squeak. "Adrien! I'm — _bon annivers_ — wait, I already wished you a happy birthday. Right?"

He chuckled, giving her a hug. "Thank you Marinette, it means a lot," he showed her the lucky charm, which made her blush madly. He placed the loop on the button of his shirt pocket, before closing said pocket, ensuring the gift wouldn't fall. "With it, I'm sure I can beat you at  _Ultimate Mecha Strike III_."

She smiled at him, before giving him a teasing mock punch to his chin, "dream on, Agreste."

He chuckled as he opened the car's door and guided her inside. Of course, by then everyone was ready; Marinette had left a some  _café au lait_ , chocolate and orange juice out for each resident, already knowing what everyone liked, along with some  _pain au chocolat_ and plain croissants. Everyone came rushing out with paper bags holding their choice, having drank their drinks at the house. Nino and Alya brought Adrien and Marinette a bag each, mostly because everyone else insisted. Even though they had already eaten, they gratefully accepted the begs.

Chloé tried to sit between them, but Adrien displayed his wish otherwise by buckling the bluenette and then himself, evidently going against Chloé's wish for the first time. It was an unsettling first for the blonde girl. They arrived at school by the time the first bell rang; it was chaotic. Everyone groaned at their past-bedtime impromptu party, since math was the most demanding class. The lessons lasted an hour, and the remaining hour and rest of the school day, was spent in the library, crunching down the numbers for their homework. Surprisingly, Nino joined their little fraternity of sorts. He sat besides Adrien, much to Chloé's displeasure.

Afterwards, lunch, another photo shoot Marinette and Adrien shared, one in which she entertained herself with the yo yo but still offered input. Somehow, her charm became the focus, and she knew just which clothes would help maximize the look. A black, open, button down shirt over a white plain one, with the Gabriel _brand_ logo, his hair messy and up with gave him a bad boy vibe, that eyeliner and piercings and metal and leather would accentuate, but it wasn't something anyone else suggested. He felt conflicted since, he was sure, it would be a very Cat Noir look and something he craved. Alas, it wasn't meant to be.

Or so he thought.

"Now that it is all done," Marinette spoke from among the collection of clothes in his changing space; she took out a faux leather jacket, black, with metallic spikes along the shoulders and seams, "instead of your fancy black shirt, try this."

He blinked in surprise, but her genuine smile made him do as told. Her look seemed to soften, and he found himself inexplicably drawn. He smiled in return as she changed the charm of place, and his look of surprise as she attached spikes along his left ear shell only. Stepping back, she admired her handy work, neither seeing the photographer taking candid pictures.

Marinette giggled. "You look ridiculous."

"Hey, you're the one who dressed me in these," he objected, placing on finger-less faux leather gloves. "Now I feel like a rebel."

"All you're missing is a bike, _greaser_ ," she teased with a roll of eyes. At his bright eyes, she blushed and turned away. "I mean — you look silly! I mean — you're amazing — I mean, you _look_ amazing." She hid her face.

"Hey," he took her hands, "I'll be Danny if you'll be Sandy," he whispered, before kissing her cheek.

Someone recorded the whole thing; it went viral. Everyone insisted it wasn't Adrien, he would never wear spikes in his ears or his hair in a Goku upward style. The children were, mercifully, oblivious of it all. Ignorance was bliss.

Of course, Adrien changed back into his usual clothes, charm still in place, which made the bluenette blush. Since the photo shoot was done sooner that expected, they had some time to kill, which meant Marinette spent more time playing with the yo yo. It was evident she had experience, making it look like a faithful pup following her or going to her side at a call, but he could tell she was uncertain while playing with it, unlike Ladybug. The again, he wouldn't know her uncertainty stemmed from a desire to not being found as Ladybug. It was a precious balance.

Soon, their limousine arrived, and since they still had time, he decided to make a pit stop. Blindfold in place, he took her out, and surprised her by taking it off in front of her parents. As she predicted, she cried and blubbered like a baby, falling asleep in her mother's embrace.

"What's your intention with my daughter boy?" Tom inquired, serving him a croissant.

"Oh, sorry sir, she's a friend," he replied with a smile.

Tom raised both eyebrows, "oh. The internet depicts it as something more. My apologies."

"Calm down Tom, they're too young!" Sabine chastised, before smiling at the blond. "Thank you for bringing her, I'm sure she'll be devastated when she has to leave."

Adrien gave her a surprised look. "I know she was homesick, I honestly thought you would have missed her, finding it strange why she hadn't come."

"Oh, we miss her alright," Tom spoke, sigh evident as his eyes rounded on his only child. "Sometimes I'm of a mind of going to that house myself and taking her home, but I won't be the reason why she doesn't make this show into a stepping stone."

"We know she'll fight to stay home," Sabine began, holding her baby tight, "she just won't return unless something stronger pulls her. She always had trouble interacting with her peers, mostly she doesn't know the impact she has on others and sells herself short. Perhaps that's what comes from being an only child."

The blond could say nothing but stare mutely. He knew that feeling, he was sure he had that kind of anxiety himself to a lesser degree, thanks to Chloé of all people. Chloé herself had that very same problem, to a different extent, considering she always got what she wanted without trouble. He was sure Marinette also got what she wanted, but she also knew the value behind it. Despite how it might look, Gabriel didn't give him whatever he wanted whenever he asked, Adrien had to earn it; the only thing he had without working for it, was his mother's, Nathalie's, and Gabriel's, emotional support and never ending love, just like Marinette. Maybe Chloé didn't have to work for it, but she certainly associated it with material things; even her support came with ties beyond loyalty, which was the reason why Adrien had been distant.

After the short visit, he took the girl in his arms and carried her bridal style, back to the limousine. He left a crying Sabine and a conflicted Tom behind, but he didn't know what else to do. Once in the car, Marinette woke, and began crying, not noticing how much like Cat Noir Adrien was acting, or how he was holding her or her him, as she cried her eyes and feelings out. It was a painful experience for them both; her for leaving her biggest supporters behind, and him for having to take her from them.

* * *

Marinette had a harder time than usual getting into character. Her father left her a cheese filled croissant in a paper bag, and it got the water works started again. Luckily, her mask could cover, to an extent, the puffiness of her eyes.

"And with us, Ladybug!" Alec cried as she waved to everyone and the cameras, before going to her work station, where Chloé sat, impatient. "Now, you may start!"

"Finally!" Chloé huffed, "I don't like being kept waiting."

"Sadly, I must also answer to Monsieur Agreste," Ladybug replied with a conflicted smile. "Come, we're going to work on the shirt and pants."

As usual, she traced the patterns and Chloé did the cutting. While she waited for the pieces, which she would sew together using a machine, she began making something. While she did the sewing, the blonde worked on the pants' pattern. The shirt was blue, while the pants were black. Until Chloé had nothing else to do and Ladybug was the only one working. Being at a loss, she actually tried to work on what her idol had been doing, but she was at a loss of where to begin or what exactly to do. It truly surprised her when LB came to her and showed her the ropes.

"I won't use it," Ladybug began, "but it won't be the last time I knit something, and practice makes perfect."

" _This_ , is _knitting_?" Chloé gasped. "I'm not an old lady, and neither are you!"

Ladybug chuckled. "Since I'm a Ladybug, I live only 2 to 3 years," she winked at the blonde, "which means that I'm likely, starting to be an old ladybug."

Chloé scoffed while the contestant chuckled. The blonde was sad with the results, and as always, LB stopped 15 minutes prior and worked on something else. It was on what she had been working on for the past three weeks or so. When she was done, she went to Nathalie, for something incredibly specific; you only went to her when you needed help outside and inside the show.

"Nathalie, is there any way to get Adrien a gift I made?" She asked with some hesitation. "I think it might work better if I send it as Ladybug."

"Of course," Nathalie answered with a small smile, "I can get you a gift box, too."

"Yes, that would be amazing," LB replied with a happy smile.

"I can see the sadness there," the woman whispered sadly, "you can give it to him as yourself."

But she just shook her head. "No, I . . . I don't think, that'll be a good idea."

"Okay," and that was what was so great about Nathalie, she didn't pressure her as Marinette, or as Ladybug.

Giving Nathalie a grateful smile, she turned to go back to her work station, when she witnessed a sight that made her blood run cold.

"What," she began in a soft whisper, "do you, _Minou_ , **_think_** you're doing?"

"Admiring your work, m'Lady," he answered, his back to the girl, "I must say, it's an exquisite job."

"And if a thread is damaged," he turned to look at her and froze in place. He could see it in her bluebell eyes, a hint of madness, a cold fire, "what then?"

He frowned. "I know the competition is impor —"

She slapped him. Everyone froze, staring, looking at them as they had what could closely resemble, their first fight; it was, most certainly, the first time anyone had ever laid hands on the pesky cat. The Gabriel _brand_  had — either made or purchased — a TV station, the man specifically made to promote the reality show. It was revolutionary, since for the first time, it was real time events and raw, unedited footage at all times. Like a pay-per-view style, the watchers chose which competitor they wished to watch during the two hour fashion event, and which places in the house they wanted to watch; common areas or certain spaces within the rooms to show the individual working. They even had cameras at the school, in classes and hallways, and this one had acquired many more viewers when Adrien Agreste was a confirmed new student. Whenever something interesting, like Adrien joining the school, was happening either during the fashion segment or the house, or the school, the Ladyblog was always on top.

Gabriel had been having trouble getting a way to always have a trustworthy source of news regarding the show, and Emilie knew, which was why she came up with Lady WiFi as a side project for her to work on. He had never been shy about giving her due credit, but the woman herself had left fans speculating whether she was the brilliant mastermind behind, and if she was, was she also the one pulling the strings behind HawkMoth and the entire reality show? Right now, Lady WiFi had twitted and was even live-streaming as well, and so everyone was either watching from her stream or immediately swapped channels — she was much better than PR — and everyone in Paris, heck, the whole of France, immediately tuned in. He was either always getting someone to fill the position, or he was going to keep her; as he was looking towards the future, it all looked like a wonderful mess.

"Who says, this is for the competition?" Ladybug asked harshly. "Now, placed it back."

Cat Noir got mad, and carelessly dropped the blue fabric. "There's no need —"

Ladybug ignored him and gently and with all delicacy, took it and folded it with almost reverence.

"Is it for someone?" He asked in a scathing tone never heard before.

"Green isn't a good color, alley cat," Chloé sneered.

"My eye color isn't a good color on me?" He asked with a snort and a roll of eyes, before turning back to the dark-haired girl. "Is it perhaps for the leader of the show or the brand?"

"It doesn't matter Cat Noir!" Ladybug snapped, finally turning to face him, indignation evident now that she had stopped handling with care and worry the fabric. "Whether I made it for someone or not, it is none of your business!"

"It is!" He snapped back, barely catching himself from growling.

"No it is not!" She replied equally hotly, going at him with tears in her eyes, which broke and scared him badly; she began hitting his chest and he was at a loss, unable to hold her back and yet, he could tell, she was barely hurting him, she didn't want to. "It is not up to you what I do, for whom, why, or even if it is for someone at all!

"You have no say in my life, much less this one, where I am strong," she sobbed that last one to his chest, and he knew she felt betrayed, "and no matter how hard I try to hate you right now, I can't!"

"I'm sorry," he whispered, hugging her tightly until she her crying subsided. "I'm sorry."

"That won't fix the damage," she whispered back.

"Ladybug," a voice that immediately relaxed her called, and when the blonde woman was in sight she went to her with as much dignity as she could muster. Without anything else being said, and with five minutes to spare (it might have felt like an eternity but it was barely minutes) Ladybug left through a door that was exclusive for the Agreste family, being guided by one Emilie Agreste. Once in the VIP room, she broke down and cried on the woman's figure as she had been doing on Cat Noir previously, only the woman laid down on the couch and held the girl tenderly, comforting her. After five minutes she had to ask, "feeling better?"

"I'm sorry," she hiccuped, sniffling as Nathalie gave her a handkerchief to use and with a grateful smile, she dried her own tears. "I'm so sorry. I never wanted to break down in such a manner."

"Well, fortunately for you, it doesn't look like you're crying, it looks like you're barely capable of holding your rage," Nathalie said with a wince. At the incredulous look she sighed. "Okay, it's again a fifty-fifty on the matter."

Marinette whined. "I swear. . . ." But she just finished the sentence with a sigh. "Now I don't know if I can give it to Adrien; it's not perfect."

"Don't worry too much Little Lady," Emilie said with a sad smile, "I can be honest and tell you, he'll love it."

"In order to not make it look like favoritism," Nathalie began with some hesitation, "we'll say Gabriel had it commissioned from Ladybug for Adrien's birthday."

"Up to you, Little One," Emilie said with a grin, helping Marinette wash the dark paint and take the extensions off her blue hair, and washing her face too. "It would make everything be a little less suspicious."

"Monsieur Agreste isn't happy about the deceit, but he is knows it's better than to have people see you as Marinette," Nathalie added; they couldn't have their star kicked out so early due to identity.

Rubbing her eyes and getting the spots off her earrings, Marinette agreed with a sigh. Quickly, she changed out of the spandex and back to her normal clothes, and Emilie helped her quickly tie her hair again. Soon, she was back outside in an inconspicuous corner, looking a bit more out of sorts than usual.

"Ugh, I do not understand why they even have you pretending to be part of the contestants," Chloé said as if she had something foul in her mouth.

Marinette didn't even hear her, too sad about her present being ruined. Everyone noticed her being quiet but no one could get her out of her stupor, not even Alya. She might finally have been broken. Everyone decided to give her space. Fortunately, the camera in the rooms were only on during Sundays, and that was only if they weren't in the common rooms. Even if someone wanted or requested for the channel to open, the Gabriel _brand_  would fire anyone who would dare put the privacy of the contestants at risk. Especially since they were still minors.

She was, of course, found by certain pesky cat. "I saw you were slapped pretty badly," she whispered, touching the spot tenderly. "Are you okay?"

"I'll survive," he replied.

At his wince, she quickly removed her hand had if he were a wild animal who could bite. "Sorry." She clearly thought she had hurt him.

"No, princess, please," he requested, before sighing and groaning; he never thought he would be someone who would have trouble expressing himself. He knew he had a long way to go, but he never thought he was incompetent at it. "I feel bad about everything, and I also think I was at fault."

"There is never a good reason to be harmed," she replied hotly, tears running down her eyes, "what — just because she's the star of the show she gets preferential treatment? I mean, even being guided to the exclusive Agreste-only room — ugh, no!"

"Princess —" he was at a loss.

"There's nothing that can be said that can explain anything that happened tonight!" She cried with exasperation.

"The piece was directly requested by Gabriel Agreste for his son," Cat Noir said, making her throat close and resist the urge of giving herself away to the stranger before her. "It was clearly something that he had never done before, and what could boost her standing.

"Not only did I harm her, I did worse bringing that fact to light."

She made a ball out of herself and from that point, anything that was said, was moot. What he did do, was drop her then himself down, and hold her until her silent crying subsided. He felt worse then. Marinette was clearly someone who had a deep emotional issue with Ladybug, and he doubted he made things better with his words. He also thought that, perhaps, her gift to Adrien was nothing compared to the Ladybug scarf he got; despite it all, Adrien was, without fail, going to wear his Ladybug-exclusive, scarf. What he couldn't possibly know, was how much she treasured him for his words, and his loyalty, to her masked self who had, without real reason, reacted badly to him touching a scarf she actually made for her crush.

Neither of them knew, and hence, they were blissful in their ignorance; since neither of them could do something about their thoughts, they took that time they had to enjoy each other's company. Marinette, being appreciated, loved and cherished as Ladybug by someone she considered a friend, and Cat Noir, content at being allowed to hold the first person who seemed to defend him, even when he was at the wrong.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, who wants for Adrien to have sneaked into Marinette's bedroom and for them to have slept side by side, cuddling? Adrien spooning Marinette.  
> This is running so badly away from me, and I'm most certainly enjoying this more than I should.  
> Also, quick shout out to the poll in my profile at FF.net; check it out, and vote!

**Author's Note:**

> I know! I know! This thing is double the length of a usual chapter that I release, it's just a little above 7k words! Believe me, I am as surprised. I didn't expect it to be this long, honestly, and some details surprised even me. Had to add a bit of the Miraculous lore because, well, it's part of the show, right?
> 
> Anyway, this might be what I start updating from hence forth, nothing is set in stone yet. Don't hang me!
> 
> Please, _please_ let me know your thoughts in a comment, and to those who will kudos the story even if it just begun: my eternal gratitude!


End file.
